Candy Fit For a Demon Lord
by CelestialDragon423
Summary: [AU] Rin is just your average girl running a candy shop, but when she gets a craving for a semisweet chef how will she deal with his disapearing act?  Then her less then stelar past may come back to turn the tides between them...
1. Mr Lemon Bar and Ninja Cookies

**Candy Fit For a Demon Lord**

_Okay this is a story I have been considering for a while. It will have a few kinks in it, but I want to test the fist chapter out on you and see how it goes. If you like it and I get five reviews, give or take depending on the reactions, I will continue it, but if it flops I will remove it. This is just a little experimenting on my part. I want to get away from the regular things I put in my stories. Also the title and rating may change if I continue. Rating because I can't make up my mind, and title because I think most of my titles suck so far. Tell me what you think and I am always glad to hear from readers, either happy or disappointed. __Keep in mind this is AU. _

_Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha. All rights go to Rumiko Takahshi. I also don't own Hershey's chocolates or any of the food Rin makes and sells. I don't own the songs that are mentioned and I don't own the idea for the bad baking food fight. Those rights go to the makers of Charlie's Angels the movie, or their respective artists. Please don't sue me for doing terrible things to the characters. I butcher so much. _

What in blazes is that god awful racket? Ugh… that better not be Shilulu or I swear I will kill her for interrupting my sleep. I cracked a bleary eye open, and winced at the harsh sun pouring through my curtains. After taking a couple minutes to blink the sleep away, and adjust to the infernal sun, I finally got to look around for the source of the music. I looked around and noticed that there wasn't anyone in my room to make the noise so it had to be… Oh No! I scrambled frantically to my bag and snapped my cell phone open, barely making it before Jason Mraz I'm Your's finished playing. "Moshi, Moshi! This is Rin," I panted smoothing my hair while glancing around the room.

"Wow! Nice save Rin-chan you nearly missed me. Now, get your lazy butt out of bed and open the door for me before I violate the law against breaking and entering a home. I can't wait forever you know," Shilulu chuckled. I sighed nodding silently and hung up, leaving my bedroom and walking across the apartment to the front door. Upon opening the door, I was tightly embraced by my partner in crime, Shilulu.

Shi-chan is the oddest fox demoness you can come across, and I love her for it. She helped me through some rough spots in my life, and only recently have I been able to look back with her and thank her for making me laugh, and just in general, supporting me the whole time. She is a mother hen, and a reckless mess at the same time, with nothing but kindness directed to me. We are very tight friends.

"Dear lord Rin! How long have you been sleeping! We need to spend some time at the studio before we head down to open up the store, and you aren't even dressed! We are running on a tight schedule here, and just because yesterday was the grand opening doesn't mean that you are in the clear. There are rough waters ahead owning your own business, you know that. Go get cleaned up, and I will get everything else ready," She said quickly shoving me in the bathroom. I sighed as I hopped into the shower, knowing she was right.

I have just opened a candy store in an old cafe in the middle of Tokyo. I make almost all the sweets, not just candy but anything with sugar in it, myself hand made. It is an American import shop too, so I make and sell American favorites. It is pretty popular among today's teenagers. I love cooking, and so working with candy all day suits me well. I spent most of last night after the grand opening baking my eyes out, so that everything was made, or at least started, and kept fresh for today. Shi-chan helps me cook and man the customers, switching back and forth every so often. Shilulu owns her own studio for the arts already, so her help is temporary until I find more help, or am comfortable enough to do it on my own. This has been my dream forever and I can't believe it is finally happening. I didn't expect it to happen so soon, much less when I am 29.

I know. I am really young to be able to own prime real-estate in Tokyo and running a shop that is paid for pretty well. Lets just say I can afford it because of some bad situations in the past. I don't ever want to go over that. My college degree is in design, but my dream and passion is in cooking, and more importantly, sweets. I know how to make over 300 different candies, cakes, pastries, chocolates, and basic sugar delights. I also sell big brand names for things I can't make but want to sell. You can pretty much find every type of desert in my store, thank you very much.

It took several more minutes of shampoo and body wash before I bolted out the bathroom to the already closed off bedroom for changing. My bed was made, my backpack/briefcase had been loaded and taken from the room, and there were clothes lying on the bed. See, what did I tell you? She is a complete mother hen.

She had laid out my basic work uniform which included jeans, a tee-shirt, and a cotton jacket. The cotton jacket was just a plain see through white, and it usually stayed in my brief case during the day. Today's tee-shirt was white and said "The Sweetest Thing in The World is a Kiss" in pink and on the back was a picture of a Hershey's Kiss and pink lipstick kiss on the tip. We found all these ridiculous candy shirts when I found out that I was going to open the shop, and Shi-chan decided to make matching hair accessories for me. Today's are a pink hair tie with kisses painted on them and matching chopsticks. They're cute but really juvenile in my opinion. Shilulu's come back is that I can't exactly work in a candy shop wearing a business suite. Which is sadly true. I put the clothes on and my leg brace underneath my jeans. The brace is from a supposed accident caused my ex boyfriend, who is not to be discussed. He is one of those rough spots in my life better left forgotten. I finished dressing and put my hair up into a bun using the pink hair stuff, before I hurried out the room to find Shilulu.

I found her in the kitchen cooking breakfast for me, and doing my dishes.

"Shilulu! What are you doing! I can do my own dishes when I get home tonight, and we need to get going. Right," I yelled exasperated. No matter how many times I find her doing my work in anything I never get used to it. I am used to doing everything myself.

"Hold on! I have your food ready and you don't have to worry about eating it here. It is portable, and perfect for eating on the go. We can be a little late to the studio anyway," She said turning away from the counter. She handed me chopsticks and a box with a cover filled with fruit, yogurt, and granola. She picked up my briefcase and keys while walking to the door. After locking my door, we hurried out to the parking lot and jumped onto her lovely motor bike. She loves me and the bike equally, if that is any comfort. The good news about the bike is that it makes morning traffic a breeze to navigate through.

We arrived at Shi-chan's studio and unlocked the doors at around 8:30, and we started cleaning up after the last class, oil painting, before we got down to the business of the paper work for the shop. Shilulu still held some of her morning classes in the morning and the evening, so she could still have the studio open and help me at the same time. We would discuss paper work and such while she did classes in the morning. We opened the store at about eleven, but we get there at ten so we can prepare everything. Monday through Saturday the shop is open from eleven to ten, and Sundays noon to five. I work a lot but it is worth it in the end. Most of the week is slow before noon, but Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are huge selling days. Today would be relatively busy for a Thursday. I love Fridays, so today I will be hyper and perky ready for my favorite day.

I started my paper work in Shilulu's office while she left to teach a spiritual dance class. Don't ask… I never bothered. I was still settling bank loan and deposit slips from last month. So much work went into buying this place that I almost gave up several times. Shilulu was always there to whack me on the butt for being lazy, careless, and angst filled for loosing a dream. She over exaggerates so much. Sorta. There were also papers for a shipping service, involving deals with companies and the local mail carriers. We wanted to be able to ship my products everywhere, but we are starting out small with locals. It just takes one step at a time. All this work kept me busy for the hour, and I didn't even finish it all! The paper work was so aggravating the thought of working in my store was so soothing and comforting right now. I needed to unwind, and get rid of the stress.

I packed up when Shilulu came in toweling her hair dry after her shower, Ahh, the joys of really short hair, suggesting we get a move on before we were behind. We left as abruptly as we came and drove down to the shop finally. We parked in the old cafe's parking lot, and I went to unlock the door while Shi-chan made sure her bike wouldn't be carted off during the day. I got to walk up to the front entrance of my baby, The Chocolate Pallet. It is supposed to be a play on words, but no one ever gets it. When I turned on the lights Shilulu greeted me at the door, and promptly re-locked the door. She is paranoid that someone will break into the shop while we are in the back and shoot us, or something like that. Yet again, proof that she is insane. I just ignore her paranoia and put on gloves, a hair net, and an apron, so I can start cooking in the back. Shilulu just rolled her eyes at my doubt and followed my lead putting on her special gloves, a hair net on her head and fox tail (It's funny to watch!), and her personal apron. With our routines done we were finally able to get to the real part, cooking.

In the back room we have a radio that we listen to and play music for the shop. Shilulu complied clean, candy songs for ambiance, but all it did was serve to annoy her terribly. She said that if she never hears another candy song it will be too soon. I had to start with the toped fruit because that was the desert that had to be freshest. I put on several pots for caramel, dark chocolate, white chocolate, and milk chocolate, while Shilulu took out the dough for sugar and fruit pastries. We both cut up fruit and nuts just making small talk in comfort. We always concentrated more on the food than the entertainment of each other. I would occasionally glance out the window to the street and see people walking past. Once or twice I would make a comment about a person to Shilulu and we would laugh, fume, or shake our heads in disappointment. Everything was just normal for us today. While the toppings were heating up I also started a couple cake orders we had from our regulars to the store. They would come and pick up the cakes later for whatever purpose they would serve, and we would get more recognition. It was all normal for us, and after I got through the first of the morning chores I went to open up shop.

It was nice to get out of the back room because even if I love cooking it's nice to interact with the people. After unlocking the door and propping it I got to take off my apron and hair net. Only gloves were required for behind the counter, thank god! We already had our first customer of the day which was a little odd for 11:23 in the morning.

"Good morning miss, welcome to the Chocolate Pallet. How can I help you this morning," I said in my usual cheery counter voice. She scowled at me, and continued to look around. The shop wasn't all that big and had a landing with steps that walked up to the counter and displays, jars, and containers sweets. Quite frankly it was very hard to ignore me in such a small space. I was very put off, so I tried again.

"Sorry to interrupt, but is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, so butt out. Can't you ravenous workers ever leave people alone," she snapped rudely. I was shocked, but had no choice but to deal with it for the time being. She continued to look around for another five minutes and then brought up a bag of chocolate covered raisins.

"Is that all for today miss," I asked through clenched teeth as I rang up her raisins.

"Yes," she said bitterly glaring at me. Despite my dearest wishes, I could not return that glare back to her overly tan face.

"That will be 585 yen please." _(AN: I read in Kamichama Karin that 1.00 US is about equal to 100 yen. If I am wrong in the calculations or the conversion please let me know and I will be glad to fix it.)_

"585 yen! That is absurd for a bag of raisins. I refuse to buy such a product for such an outrageously high price," she shouted shrilly.

"I'm sorry miss, but that is the price we marked it for. We have other items that may be less expensive, if you wish to peruse those. We felt it was a fair price when we marked it because of the amount in the bag," I ground out, getting more and more frustrated. There was a lot of raisins in that bag, and everything in the store is pretty cheep for an import shop. We could be charging through the roof for our products and instead we get yelled at for being reasonable. Some people are just so high maintenance today.

"I don't want your other stupid products! I demand to see the manager about this affront," she haughtily demanded.

I grinned and got my revenge," Miss I am sorry to say that I am the manager. You see, I like my shop and how I have priced everything, so if you have a problem you can take it and stick it where the sun don't shine. If you want cheaper goods and someone who will deal with your attitude you best get out of here because I am not going to be that person. With that I threw the raisins back to there display and showed her the door. I hate people who think the world revolves around them, and I am not going to be the one to be pushed around by them. I have already had enough of being a pushover in my lifetime. I decided to take refuge in the back room for a while, already suiting back up.

"Shilulu, you can go man the register for now. I need some time to unwind and bake again," I said stiffly walking back into the kitchen.

"Rough time already, huh? That woman was a total sleaze bag, not all customers are like that so don't fret." I looked at her with an odd expression, but let her go out to the front. I needed to cool down. Recently after my accident, I can just get so worked up over nothing and go ballistic on everyone, even my own friends. Taking time away from people was what I needed for now, until I got used to playing in the outside world again.

In the next five hours I stayed in the back most of the time. I did a shift or two when Shi-chan was tired or wanted lunch, or just wanted to cook for a bit, but for the most part she cut me slack. She knew I wasn't used to being around people much after my problems with Akitoki. He had kept me away from socializing with pretty much everyone in the months I was with him. He had excuses like he could provide for the both of us, and I didn't have tons of friends worthy of me at the time, so I took the bait hook line and sinker. I was shut away, and didn't even realize until he made unwelcome advances. I got away from him like a bat out of hell, but in the process, damaged a good portion of my nerves in my left leg. After recuperating with Shilulu, it was the choice to get surgery to restore my leg to its former glory or open the shop, and you see my choice today. I can still walk okay with the brace, I just can't stand on it forever or run very well. I wear pants so no one can see the brace, and I look like everyone else. I survive just fine though, and am happier for my choice.

It was around 4:38 when I was watching my cookies in the oven. I looked out the window at the people walking the streets when I saw something curious. A man, possibly a demon with the height and hair on him, was looking into stores with an odd expression on his face. He was acting so odd that I was terribly curious as to what he was doing. It wasn't uncommon to see demons around here at all, but to see one acting so fidgety was new to me. I just watched him, until I heard hysterical laughter coming from the door. I looked up to see Shilulu in her apron grinning from ear to ear.

"I know people watching is a favorite sport of yours Rin, but making the cookies suffer for it is unfair." I gasped looking down at the oven to see extra dark brown cookies with smoke starting to surround them. I took them out to see if they were salvageable, taking a quick glance outside to see the mysterious man gone. Shilulu continued chuckling while waltzing over to the rapidly cooling pan. She picked up one of the star shaped cookies and brandished it at me.

"This, Rin, is what you get when you don't pay attention to what you are doing. Just because there are hot men walking around outside doesn't mean you should drop everything and drool," she admonished cheekily.

"Oh, shut it you. Do you want to have an oddly shaped cookie shoved in a place that is really uncomfortable," I grinned evilly.

"Hmmm… If I recall correctly shoving things in those places is reserved for hot men that walk around suspiciously with a look of oh my god I must find Rin and f…"

She never got the chance to finish her statement before I took one of the cookies and threw it like a ninja star at her head screaming," Evil Cookie Ninja Star Attack!" Sadly the cookie missed her head when she ducked. At close inspection it had embedded into the wall. We both looked at each other, the at the cookie, then back again, then fell over laughing hysterically. I distantly heard the bell on the shop door ring, but ignored it for a minute or two for a good laugh. I went to take my shift while Shilulu desperately tried to compose herself, or keep from wetting her pants, one of the two. Taking off the apron and hair net, I walked into the shop.

While wiping away my tears of mirth, I called out sweetly," Welcome to the Chocolate Pallet. How can I help you on this glorious afternoon!" Then I actually noticed who I was talking to. The man from earlier, that had caused all the mayhem was standing before me with a delicate eyebrow raised at my state. He was just as tall as I had seen him, but much different up close.

He wore business casual of a black long sleeve shirt, despite the temperatures, and black slacks that were as emasculate as his polished shoes. He was a demon as I guessed earlier with markings covering his wrists, cheeks, eyes, and forehead varying from stripes of red to a blue crescent moon. He had long silver hair that was braided, and went well past his waist. His face was set in a hard cold look and his golden eyes mirrored his expression. The only thing out of place was that eyebrow of his. It made me feel terribly stupid, and all he was doing was looking at me. I coughed lightly and tried again," I'm terribly sorry sir. Welcome to the Painters Pallet, how can I help you?"

"Just browsing," he stated looking around the displays. The way he looked, I wondered why he was in our shop. Such a well off demon wouldn't typically go around candy shops to satisfy a sugar craving. Talk about an odd person. About ten minutes later of browsing from him he spoke up. With a deep sigh he stated," I am in need of a gift for my nephew's birthday." I nearly lit up at what he said. He needed help to find his nephew a gift, and didn't want to ask for help? That is so cute! I smiled and replied," Do you know if he likes chocolate or some other type of candy?"

He nodded ,"he has a mild reaction to chocolate, so anything else is suitable."

"Inu youkai right? That's fine, if you want I can put together a gift basket that doesn't contain chocolate. How old is he also, I don't want to get kids favorites for an adult or anything," I said hastily.

Looking away from the counter he quietly said, "he is four."

"Oh," I rooted around for a basket under the counter and came up with a nice sand colored wicker one. While I was setting it up with cotton at the bottom and a ribbon on the handle, I heard talking coming from the kitchen. "Dear god! It's stuck in the fucking wall!" I burst out laughing and had to grab the counter for support. I composed myself as quickly as possible which was not very fast. The demon was looking at me with that raised eyebrow again, and it was disconcerting. I got to work on the basket to ignore the feeling.

The next half an hour was spent finding non chocolate candy. I got a huge bag filled with jelly beans of every flavor we had, which was about 25, and a flavor guide. There were marshmallows covered in nuts, peanut butter covered pretzels, lollipops, sugar cookies (not the ones I made earlier), a candy apple covered in sprinkles and caramel, and stuffed it into the basket. I found other various non refrigerated sweets and was able to fit it all in. As a finishing touch I put in a stuffed rabbit holding a lollipop, and made sure everything was secure so he could carry it and not have it all fall out on the ground. I felt really tired after all this for some reason which was odd, but ignored it, and rang up the basket.

"We do personalized gift baskets frequently and it all comes out to 3,500 yen. _(AN:$35.00) _If you wanted to get something else for your nephew that isn't going to make him hyper try the art supply store down the street. They have a nice kids travel kit that would make him really happy," I hinted. He was so awkward about telling me he needed help that I thought it would be a good idea if he had a little assistance. The kid would love the candy, but I knew that a four year olds parents wouldn't let him have that whole basket. Something else for the kid to have that he can keep would be a good idea, so I intervened.

"Your assistance was appreciated, thank you," he said handing over the money. Wow, that was cold.

"No problem. I love helping out as much as possible. I hope your nephew enjoys his gift. Bring him back some time, I love kids. Oh…by the way, I never caught your name," I babbled incoherently. I was surprised he even bothered answering.

"Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru Takahashi," he seemed hesitant when he replied, almost as if something terrible would happen when he said it.

"It was great meeting you Sesshomaru. Please come anytime were open all week. I'm Rin Omeiya by the way. Sorry if I was rude asking you for your name when you don't know who I am. If you come back let me know how your nephew liked the basket, I need customer feed back when I can get it," I said. I have no idea why I was going on and on to this stranger, but for some reason I wanted him to stay. This was weird for me.

Sesshomaru nodded his head and picked up the basket, and turned to the door. I watched him go and just before he left he stopped.

"Good bye," and with that he left. I was startled that he even bothered to say anything to me. I decided I should better switch off with Shilulu and take a crack at getting that cookie out of the wall. I snickered at the thought.

Upon entering the kitchen, I was greeted by a flustered Shilulu.

"I swear to god that I am putting a plaque up on the wall under the cookie. It will read, **In honor of Rin Omeiya, may this cookie stand for all to see how scatter brained she was. May she never pay attention to what she is supposed to be doing, and gawk at all the icicle up their ass, men who pass by the store forever. Her greatness should never be forgotten in how she was able to make such a terrible cookie. Hopefully after going through all the work to put said crappy cookie in the wall, that she at least gets the stupid guy who caused all this.** I think that it will make a nice addition to the wall don't you," she said sizing up the wall and using a pencil to make a rectangle where the plaque would go. I walked over to the stove and picked up another one of the cookies that still hadn't been disposed of.

"Oh Shi-chan," I called lightly. As soon as she turned to face me, in rapid succession I threw cookies and pinned her to the wall.

"You were right about one thing Shilulu. After all that trouble I do hope Mr. Lemon Bar comes back. He may be stiff as hell, but you have to admit, he is cute." With that I left a shrieking Shilulu to her own devices.


	2. Sour Memories

**Candy Fit For a Demon Lord chapter 2**

**Sour Memories **

Y_ay, I am on chapter two! I'm sorry it took so long for me to update, I needed to get everything in order. I was very happy with the responses to chapter one, so I obviously decided to continue it. This is still experimental, and I am unused to writing like this. I did some math with a basic outline and decided that the story should be around another seventeen chapters as a rough estimate. This is assuming everything is according to plan and what people have to say. Please tell me if there is something that you feel should be changed for one reason or another. I am flexible on how I write. Suggestions for the story are welcomed, so if you want something specific to happen in the story feel free to contact me. I do have a plot for the story though so if it interferes I may not be able to put it in. Thanks for support!_

Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha. All rights go to Rumiko Takahashi and I am not making any money on this. I don't own Hershey's chocolates or any other American candy that I mention. 

I sighed skipping around my apartment. Today was Friday and I love Fridays so much that nothing could possibly make me unhappy. Not the numerous enraged phone calls from Shilulu about me leaving her pinned to the wall for several hours, not the huge stack of paper work that I needed to fill out, and diffidently not the fact that my leg was acting up again. I had all my stuff ready and was just finishing up my breakfast, when my cell phone started ringing. This time the ring was normal which was odd considering that I usually had some obnoxious American tune to the people who had my cell number. Upon picking up, I was greeted with a chuckle that sounded oddly familiar. 

"Dear lord Rin, how long has it been since we talked to each other," came the voice from the other end. I was speechless for several minutes.

"Ko…Kohaku? Is th-that really you," I was stunned to hear my old friends voice again after so long.

"Yep, It's me again! I was so glad that you haven't changed your cell number. I wish we hadn't lost contact, why did you stop calling me all those months ago?" He was as confused as I was about everything.

I stuttered, "Kohaku, I thought you were in Europe?"

"I was, but I decided to come back. I missed my family and friends. You and I had kept in contact for so long that I was worried when you of all people stopped calling. Did something happen? I want to talk to you, is that okay," he sounded hesitant.

"I have an idea Kohaku. I have to go to my friend Shilulu's right now for a while. I finally opened my candy shop by the way, so why don't you come down to it in an hour? We could talk while I work and I could fill you in on everything. That okay with you?"

"Wow! You actually got to open the store? That's great, and, yeah, I will come down. I would like to see the store. I have stuff to tell you too," he exclaimed happily. I smiled and told him the directions to the store. We hung up and I rushed out the door to hail a cab to the studio. It was to expensive to own a car in Tokyo for someone like me. Every Yen I had went into the shop. I hopped into the cab and gave directions to Shi-chan's place.

When I got to the studio, Shi-chan was setting up for her morning classes, and I told her the good news about Kohaku coming to visit us today. She was a little hesitant at first because ever since the incident she has been wary with me around guys. She has never had the chance to meet Kohaku before, so this would be her first time.

"Is this guy really trust worthy enough to have him visiting us while we are on our own later," she questioned hesitantly. In all actuality she has never been that trust worthy around anyone. I am lucky to be near her.

"You don't have anything to worry about, Shilulu. Kohaku is as sweet as they come. He is harmless and is a good friend of mine. You know that we used to go to school together and that he kept in contact with me while he was in Europe studying. His sister raised him well and he isn't some rapist," I said exasperated. Sometimes Shilulu is hard to deal with.

"All right, but if he does one thing that upsets you or me in any way, he is out the door with a spoon in a very uncomfortable place," she warned shaking a finger at me.

I giggled, "Don't worry Shilulu. Kohaku-kun will be on his best behavior, and you won't have to shove anything, anywhere." She scoffed, but smiled at me and waved me off to the office. I know she was happy to see me getting back to normal and smiling. Whether or not she was okay with Kohaku, she would accept him if he made me happy.

While doing the morning paper work, I looked back at my friendship with Kohaku. During my whole life I never have, or will be, popular. I am just to quiet for my own good. When I lost my parents at the age of ten, I was depressed and I became mute. People thought I was weird and avoided me. Until high school nobody really talked to me at all, and I got used to it. I frequently moved in foster homes and schools because no family really liked me as a child. I got used to being un-liked by everyone. Kohaku was one of my first friends. I can never forget how everything turned out because of him in my life.

Kohaku helped me when some of the seniors beat me up for taking too long in the lunch line. I was always teased when I cried, but he didn't. He invited me to do everything with him and his friends, but he realized that I was so unsociable that I only enjoyed it when it was the two of us alone. One of his friends, Souta Higurashi I think, was the one of his friends that put fourth a lot of effort to be nice to me, but he was the only one. Despite the fact that his friends didn't like me because they thought I was stuck up he always made special time for us. I told him he didn't have to, and that I would leave him alone, but he would have none of that. I did get close to his older sister, Sango, too. Sango had to take care of her brother for years because, like me, their parents died a long time ago and not many foster families wanted them, or understood them. Sango understood me well, and it was nice to have a girl to talk to once and a while.

When the end of high school came around he still didn't cut off our friendship. Kohaku decided to major in Languages and World Studies while I went for a business route with lack of any other inspiration. While going to different colleges and having different lives, we made time to see each other about once a month. It was always about friendship between us, nothing more. I guess there wasn't any spark at all for us to consider dating. During my college adventures I met Shilulu in the park doing outdoor sketches, and I helped her when she nearly got hit by a wandering bike. Nothing like a near death experience to spark a friendship. She would come by and visit me any chance she got, and soon we were practically living together, the way we were always seen at the others living quarters. We were just natural together, but somehow I never got the chance to introduce my two friends to each other. It was odd.

When I graduated I decided not to continue with my education, and went to work for Shilulu until I got a different job. She paid well enough, and it was a great stress relieving job. I saved up money at the time so that I could eventually by my shop. Since Kohaku decided to keep going with his college career we drifted further apart until one day we forgot about each other for a year or so. When we finally got back in contact our time was limited. He was going to study abroad in Europe and I was left behind. We continued talking in various methods until a year or so ago. When I was around Akitoki absolutely no one mattered, and Kohaku was once again lost in translation. It felt refreshing to know he was making such an effort to become friends again after all this time.

When I next looked at the clock I was surprised to see it was already time for me to start packing up and getting ready to leave. I groaned knowing that I got little done while reminiscing, so that meant more paper work for me to do tonight at home. I sighed knowing I would get over it. Shilulu was sluggish to get out of the studio today. I knew why. She didn't want to meet Kohaku. I reassured her and edged her along so that we wouldn't miss him. We were just opening up shop when he arrived. In the many years I hadn't seen him, he still looked the same. His brown hair was up in a ponytail though it was pretty short, and his brown eyes sparkled at everything. He wore a plain green tee-shirt, his favorite color, jeans, and tennis shoes. Kohaku was a very laid back person when he wasn't doing sports. As soon as he walked through the door and saw me, he got this huge grin on his face and he hugged me so tight I swore I heard several of my bones screaming for mercy. When he finally released me his face was red as a cherry, but he started rattling off questions so fast it made my brain over load.

"Kohaku, it is great to finally see you again too, but let's slow down for a minute, shall we? Or do I need to get out the tranquilizer gun? Anyway, come over here, I want you to finally meet Shilulu-chan. Kohaku this is the infamous Shilulu. Shilulu this is my best buddy from high school, Kohaku-kun," I said. I desperately hoped Shi-chan wouldn't flame Kohaku out of instinct. She never really was good at sharing, and packed one hell of a punch when she used her personal brand of black and white fox fire. But, as usual, she surprised me by being civil and shaking his hand with a ghost of a smile on her face, and leaving to the back room.

Before she left she turned around, "Rin-chan stay out here and talk to Kohaku-san. I will take care of all the morning duties. You left a list last night right?" Another shock this morning. No sarcastic comments to start the day or growls at the amount of work. If I didn't see the look in her eyes I would have stood up to take her temperature. Her eyes showed trust and sincerity. She wanted me to be around other people, and she trusted my decision of Kohaku as a friend. Dear lord, demons are territorial! If I didn't know better, Shi-chan would go pissing around the corners to keep the other youkai at bay. This was the fiasco I called my life I sighed.

"Well, Kohaku-kun, I guess I have a lot of explaining to do. Come over here and sit down so we can begin. I guess I should start first," I said hesitantly. I pulled out a couple of stools and set them down so we could sit on the main floor. Then, I started my story. 

Explaining things to Kohaku was difficult. I started with explaining my current situation. I needed to assure him that I was all right presently before going on about what happened in the past. Once he seemed calm enough to process what I was about to tell him without having a litter of kittens, I told him the whole story. I didn't want to spread what happened around anymore then necessary, and I still haven't quite come to terms with it myself yet. I told him about Akitoki and the things he told me. I told him about my distancing myself from everyone and not caring. I left out the more horrifying parts because they were the parts I hadn't told anyone. Not even Shilulu who rescued me from the disaster in the end. I finished by telling him how Akitoki went to jail for reasons that didn't involve me, and the fact that the court found the evidence against him concerning me was not substantial enough to bother going into. He was sent to jail for a short time due to petty unlawfulness. I was never avenged, but I have long forgot that. It is important to move on in life.

At the end of my story Kohaku was speechless. "Are you okay Kohaku-kun," I asked hesitantly. I was worried that he wouldn't want to talk to me anymore thinking I was dangerous or something.

"Rin, you went through all that and you never told me? I am worried about you, and that you are not a wreck after all that. Most sane people would never get that out of their heads. I am appalled that the court never bothered to do anything about him, and that the psycho is out on the streets." He reached out and took my hand. He was totally freaked out and from the looks of it he was about to cry. It felt weird to have him feeling so upset about something that was minimal to me. I had nearly snapped when this all started, but I stayed strong. I refused to break down when I had survived this long.

I smiled lightly, "Well I guess that makes me insane doesn't it?"

"Rin, are you sure your all right," he questioned suspiciously.

"Do you really think that they would let a mentally unstable girl buy an old café? I sure hope not. I wouldn't be living out my dream if I wasn't fine Kohaku. Don't worry about me," I gave him another confident smile. Inside I felt a little hesitant, but I pushed those feelings aside.

He sighed, "All right, but I am going to keep an eye on you from now on. The last thing I want is a repeat of what happened while I am here."

"By the way Kohaku. Why are you back? I assumed you would be gone for at least another year or so now," I asked confused.

He smiled. "Nope, I am back for good now. My sister is engaged and stuff so I decided to bail out and spend more time with her before she's carted off. The guy she snagged is a total lecher," he muttered. I snickered. Grinning he said, "Now that all that is out of the way show me around a bit. Everything looks great and I want the grand tour."

While Shilulu opened up the shop to customers, I showed Kohaku the entire store. He loved having me explain what was in all the various desserts and seeing the layout. I was a little hesitant to show him the kitchens, but as the third surprise of the day, Shi-chan shoved him back there and explained all the things she was working on at the moment. Kohaku was even treated to the lovely story of the cookies embedded into the wall (We never did manage to get those stupid things out). Luckily Shilulu conveniently forgot to tell Kohaku why I wasn't paying attention to my baking. I owed her one for that. She seemed slightly forced in her civility, but she was making a huge effort and that was all I could ask for from her. Kohaku seemed a little scared of her at first, but then did his best to make her lighten up. I am pretty sure he failed miserably, but it was a valiant effort. Shilulu had at least a grain of respect for him by the end of it. I certainly remembered why I was friends with him.

Eventually we had to say our good-byes for the day when the store got crowded and I needed to keep an eye on the customers. Kohaku decided to buy a box of pastries to take home to share with Sango, though I tried to give it to him as a gift. He insisted. Kohaku really was to nice of a person. I was sad to let him go after all this time, but we made sure to get home phone numbers amongst many others. I truly was happy again.

"Okay Kohaku-kun, you need to promise to come visit sometime when you are free. It doesn't matter where the studio, the shop, or my apartment. If you don't come I swear I will go to your apartment or your sisters house if I have to and knock down the door, if that is what it takes," I teased.

"Don't worry Rin, you will see and hear from me frequently, now that I can get a hold of you. I might bring my sister around too, because she missed you so much. Nothing like another star struck girl to rant to about her dream wedding. I never knew Sango could be such a girlie girl," he sighed.

I laughed heartily, "Poor Kohaku was being submitted to the horrors of the dream wedding, eh? I had so much faith in Sango-san," I shook my head in pity. "Now that I am back I can save you from your worst nightmares. No one has to worry about me getting mushy on weddings since I am such a hopeless case." I snorted. Surprisingly, Kohaku gave me a look that said don't berate yourself.

"You'll find a man."

I was shocked to say the least, considering this was coming from my only male friend. I would have guessed he would be indifferent on the subject as long as he got as far away from the wedding planing as possible. I decided to drop the subject and let Kohaku get going, but before we could make it out the door to say our last good-byes, Shilulu shouted, "Oi, Rin you are going to get a decent man if I have to force one down your throat, don't kid yourself! The last thing I need is a forever single woman who needs a man in her life. I'll go to the ends of the earth to find that stubborn ass and drag him here with my bare hands, since he hasn't made an appearance yet!" Kohaku burst into laughter, and nearly fell over. I blushed furiously realizing that there were several customers browsing around the shop looking at us funny. I ushered him out the door and said a quick good-bye. He had a lot of trouble replicating the gesture do to his lack of breath.

"Just give up Kohaku before you bust a gut," I sighed still blushing.

"Terribly sorry Rin-chan," he said breathlessly after a few minutes. "I guess I should let you get back to work now. I have distracted you long enough. Call soon, okay?" He hugged me tightly.

"All right, I'll talk to you soon," I said as I hugged him back. I waved him off as he walked to his car. As soon as he drove off I went back into the store with a fiery passion in my eyes. There would be skewered fox as a special deal today for her last comment.


	3. Sunshine Boys

**Candy Fit For a Demon Lord  
Chapter 3**

**Sunshine Boys**

_Chapter 3! Woot, I am on a roll, and at the same time I am terribly late with this update! I'm so sorry about how long this took, and I understand if you are all impatient and no longer want to read this story. I can promise it won't happen again. I can partially blame this on school, but it is mostly my own laziness and inability to update quickly, despite how much I love this story. This story is so much fun to write and I am having the time of my life here. For those lovely people who reviewed I appreciate it so much. This chapter is going to be the real start up for the story, and get all of you in the romantic mood. I feel horrible to tell you this but Sesshomaru still isn't making any appearances just yet. Hold on! He will come in eventually I swear. Please know that I am not the best with humor so I don't want to force it. I don't want to make my story sound fake, it's supposed to be original. I am still willing to take requests from anyone and suggestions are welcomed. I am not sure if there is going to be a lemon in this story yet, because I really have no business writing one, but I am willing to listen to your opinions on the subject. For the people who are reading and just waiting for the lemon you might as well stop because I am unsure and at this point I am really leaning towards not having one. I feel it might ruin a good story. This story was originally posted as M because I have cursing and I don't want to be taken off, so I did it to be safe. I hope people will tell me their opinions on the subject. To lemon or not to lemon, hmm… _

* * *

Another week past, and things were pretty uneventful. It was relaxing to have somewhat smooth sailing in the shop. Shilulu and I had expected to be bombarded with every problem earth could throw at us the first couple months because of our in experience with owning real-estate. I was getting better at handling the customers and I felt very social. Shilulu said I had an annoying preppy glow about me that screamed charismatic. I wanted to wipe that sarcastic smile off her face several times. I got my chance whenever I had the cookie cutters around, but avoided confrontation in the kitchen because of the chance of retaliation. Shilulu wasn't a fire fox demon for nothing. The last thing we both needed was my shop going down in flames.

We had more encounters with Kohaku during the weeks time. Kohaku had come in several times to say hello, or even help out if so inclined, though he was no master pastry chef to say the least. He hadn't been able to get Sango to come down yet because of the lecher fiancee of hers, which was said with a large amount of brooding and eye rolling. Kohaku can be such a big baby sometimes. Sango did say hi several times, wishing she could come by. I really can't wait to see her and have her meet Shilulu. When Kohaku wasn't around, and Shilulu and I were alone, she would start asking me questions about Akitoki. It was odd that she would mention him so frequently when she had such a deep seeded hatred of him. She was asking questions about the gaps that she had in time where I hadn't told her what went on between us. She was also curious about my leg and how it had already been damaged when she rescued me. I made many excuses on getting out of the awkward conversations between us. In my opinion everything was in the past, and there was no need to talk about something that already happened.

When Shilulu had rescued me she had seen the extent of the damage all over my body. She had made guesses on what was going on, and her assumptions were correct. She carried me out of his apartment and to the hospital, crying the whole way. After a few days of recovery and some minor surgery, I made a statement to the police on my condition, but by then it had been to late. After a permitted search of his house there was no evidence of any physical abuse, only stolen goods and other contraband. He was arrested and I was battered and broken. It crushed me to know that what I had said and my condition wasn't enough to condemn him to a life in prison. Despite the lack of court hearings, Shilulu was able to pry out a good portion of the story out of me. I resolved that I would never go near another man after the things I went through and Shilulu supported my decision, as she held me when I endlessly cried. At the same time I made the resolution that I would never force Shilulu to bare the weight of all that happened, and the many things I never told her. I had, secretly wished in the back of my mind for the longest time that someday a man would change my mind about love, and that I would be able to relive all the horrors of my past to him, even the things I can't tell my best friend.(A/n: I know that last sentence was horribly corny, but I needed to express what is to come I guess. This is just so that everyone knows she will eventually come out and say the whole story so it isn't clouded in mystery forever. Continuing on…) I now have this egging feeling that she knows that I left important details out of the story, and that she had only hit the tip of the iceberg that was the horror filled relationship of Akitoki and Rin.  
With a determined air I swept all those thoughts out of my head and grabbed my things to make my way over to the studio. I knew better than to be thinking so many depressing thoughts in the middle of the morning. Maybe I should rethink the offer on meditation classes with Shippo. Shippo was a very close friend of Shilulu's, who was also a fox demon. Shippo is the one who is currently running the classes while Shilulu is away, even though he is inept when it comes to teaching. He knows how to do everything, just not how to explain it. How ironic.

"Good Morning Shi-chan," I exclaimed brightly bursting through the doors filled with a new vibrant energy. After such a sunny comment early in the morning I was un-surprised as a magazine was tossed at my head. Shilulu isn't a morning person, and doesn't like being around me in early hours. Neither of us drink coffee like a good portion of Japan, and that makes us rely on ourselves to wake up properly.

"Why are you so perky today," she grumbled when I walked over to her and slung my arm over her shoulder.

"For some bizarre reason I have the feeling that something really good is going to happen today. Have you ever had the feeling? Maybe it is just because it is Friday, but it feels different like a really exciting adrenaline rush," I squeaked as I spun around totally giddy.

"I think all those sugar fumes have gone to your head after such a short amount of time. Either that or you have been smoking something. Do you have any desire for Doritos? Or maybe marshmallow…," she tapped her chin thinking deeply about what druggies eat after smoking.

"Shilulu you are going to give yourself a headache if you keep that up. Leave the thinking to me, and you just keep looking pretty. You really are the perfect decoration and accessory," I giggled as I flounced off into the office for morning paper work. As soon as the door shut there was a loud clunk, so I stuck my head outside the door. I stuck my tongue out at her before I turned my head to see what she threw. I was shocked to find myself face to face with a burnt star shaped cookie.

"Where the hell did you get that," I asked shocked.  
She smirked evilly, "I'm not telling you, just know that I have my ways." She blew a kiss, and I shut the door shuddering. When Shilulu acted like that I knew something bad was in store for me. I waltzed over to the desk and got to work, so that I could enjoy tonight. Friday nights I stayed at Shilulu's apartment above the studio and we would stay up all night doing weird things and making fools of ourselves. If I was totally sacked out we would just make blanket nests and watch movies. Tonight I was going to enjoy myself if it killed me. I dreamed through the possibilities as I did my work, and tuned out the dreaded bubble bursting thoughts. Before I knew it a soggy Shilulu walked through the door and started hustling me over to the door with my brief case. I was slightly cranky when she got my shirt wet. Today's was a bright red tee that said in yellow "Take a bight out of life" with a Hershey's bar on the front of it, and a smiley face on the back with chocolate smeared around the mouth. She ignored my whining and shoved me onto the bike so we could get going.

Once we got to the Chocolate Pallet, we got a morning surprise. Kohaku was standing outside the door waiting for us after we parked.  
"Morning ladies, you need help today? I'm free," he shouted across as we waved. Yes, even Shilulu waved because she had started to get used to Kohaku coming around and helping out. He wasn't a genius when it came to the art of cooking, but he survived in our kitchen so that spoke volumes about him. He told us more about himself and his life while he was gone. Turns out Shilulu had nothing to worry about because Kohaku was a taken man. He had met a lovely girl named Kanna on his travels, and she decided to come along to his home. Things like this have been told inside the confidence of the kitchen. So now that Kohaku has told Shilulu more about himself and trusted her she has decided to be civil.

"Good morning Kohaku-kun! Yes, help would be most appreciated on such a lovely Friday. Please be aware that we only want your help on the condition that you don't do anymore destruction in the baking than usual," I giggled. He had a pout on his face, but he realized that his cooking skills were the current joke of the 'Pallet'.

He sighed, "I can't imagine why I help out such abusive women. I guess I am enchanted by the magic of this place." He gestured to the Chocolate Pallet.

"You know you enjoy it. Everyone comes back for more no matter what. That is the magic of the place. I swear that this place will never have one customer that didn't have at least one good thing happen to them in here. It is my new goal," I smiled while unlocking the door for us to head inside. Shilulu and Kohaku gave me strange looks of 'why are you acting so poetic and peppy today?'. I ignored them, and I kept inside my happy bubble space.

While we worked in the kitchen, I fully concentrated on my tasks today. Lately I seemed to think a lot while I bake and it messes me up a little, so I need to stop my little bad habit. I instructed Kohaku on how to kneed the dough for the sugar cookie fruit pastries while I got ready for my much harder tasks. I was doing hand made sugar lollipops all from scratch as best as I could. There was flavoring that was similar to snow cone juice mixed in with food coloring and the sugar for sugar sculptures. I made unicorn horns and many other oddly shaped suckers. With a lot of practice, I was able to pull off hand made molds for animal shaped ones. There wasn't a huge variety of shapes and such but I was terribly proud of the ones I had. That and the fact that nobody was upset due to the 20 different colors of all of them. All the work made me glad that every Sunday we had an afternoon delivery of the American sweets that I didn't have to make, jelly beans, other brand name candies, and such. Along with the lollie' predicament I also had to work with the candy apples today. They weren't hard to make just another thing that I had to do. Biting my tongue between my teeth I set to the grueling work.

I was grinning like an idiot when I walked out the kitchens an hour later. Not only had I finished all the work I needed to, one of my favorite customers was standing outside. In the few weeks we had been open, the 'Pallet' had gained quite a reputation with the children. The woman and the little boy who were standing outside the door came every two days when they went out shopping and would make a small stop for the five year old here. He was the epitome of cute and kindness for a boy his age. Shilulu loved little kids to death and so did I, so whenever kids came in we gave them extra special treatment. Establishing regulars was very important and giving this child any reason to come back brought sunshine into the store.

"Shilulu guess who's here?! Our friend is going to need some assistance today," I shouted into the back of the store as I opened up the door with a huge grin on my face. Shilulu shot out of the back and looked around wildly. As soon as she saw that they were at the door she shot to my side.

"Hello Jenjiro how are you today," Shilulu exclaimed kneeling down next to the boy and embracing him. I smiled at the site along with his mother, and I greeted her as Shilulu babbled endlessly to the little boy. Shi-chan is an absolute sucker for little kids, and it makes me wonder why she didn't go for a job with them once and a while. I know that she considered opening a day care service occasionally, but she would need a lot of certification. I might not trust her with a lot of kids alone though, due to her bad judgments on what is appropriate and what is not with kids the age of five to eleven. She can't make up her mind if she feels they are mature enough to be considered young adults or not. I never question why she would consider a five year old a young adult, though I probably should.

I was brought out of my thoughts by Shilulu falling over laughing and the little boy giggling. Smiling I said, "So, Jenji, did you come in looking for something specific or are you just looking?" He giggled and motioned for me to lean down so he could whisper in my ear. I grinned at his antics.

"I wan to buy my mommy a present for taking me here so often," he said softly. I nearly cooed at how adorable that was, and how considerate it was that he thought of his mom. I made sure to quite myself though because I didn't want to alert his mom so she would be suspicious. I nodded and asked, "I think that will be easy enough. So do you know something that it has to be?" I wanted to be as vague as possible, but I knew it wasn't very convincing.

"Mommy, today is such a nice day. Why don't you wait outside for me and enjoy the weather," Jenjiro asked sweetly. His mother smiled affectionately at him and hugged him tight. She muttered about her getting some fresh air and went out to bask in the early sun. I desperately wanted a little baby to coddle of my own right now, but I knew that wasn't going to happen. Having children involved marriage and dating men which I just didn't have the heart to do after my atrocious accident. I was just going to have to deal with coddling other peoples little kids or possibly adopting later. That was always a good idea to consider later in a midnight fantasy when I wasn't working. I took Jenjiro's hand and lead him up the steps to lean against the counter.

"Do you know what your mommy would like? Maybe chocolates," I murmured thoughtfully.

"I think my mommy really likes fruit! Do you have strawberries with chocolate on them," he exclaimed happily. I smiled and knew just what to get. We had all types of fresh fruit that was dipped in three kinds of chocolate and caramel, and some of them had toffee, sprinkles, and such scattered over them. It was all hand made arrangements in the box, and personalized on the lid. I hurried behind the counter to start the gift while Shilulu took Jenji around the store.

While they were busy I shouted back to the kitchen, "Hey, Kohaku! We have a guest that we would like you to meet! Hurry up because my boy friend is impatient." We were all silently giggling while Kohaku came bursting through the door shouting, "YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND!" I feel over laughing so hard, and Jenjiro had to hold onto Shilulu to keep from falling over. To say the least Shilulu wasn't the best help.

"You don't have to worry about it much Kohaku-kun. I can assure you that he won't beat you up if you mistreat me. It truly is sad we have such an age difference," I laughed trying hard to get the words. He looked at the laughing Jenjiro and sighed deeply. Walking over to me, he hit me over the head lightly, and then walked over to Shilulu and repeated the action while he bent down to Jenji. While Shilulu and I rubbed our heads to rid ourselves of the light throbbing, Kohaku talked to Jenji.

"Well it's nice to finally meet Rin's long lost boyfriend. I have heard so much about you, but I never seemed to catch your name," Kohaku stuck out his hand with a mischievous grin on his face.

"Jenjiro, I'm Jenjiro," the boy said. He was trying to be so serious, but was failing miserably for all the giggling. I smiled at the scene as I finished up the gift box for Jenji's mother.

Kohaku's grin widened, "Well Jenjiro can I ask for your help? As Rin-san's boyfriend I need you to keep an eye on her. She can get herself into so much trouble without anyone knowing and I need you to be that little bracer to keep her out of trouble."

Jenjiro's smile faded slightly. He turned to me with a sad look on his face. "Rin-san you get into trouble? I am scared I don't want you to get hurt. I will help all I can, but I don't know if I can do it all. Maybe you should find someone else to look after you," he sniffled with tears starting to run down his face. I turned and gave Kohaku an ugly look before I picked up Jenjiro.

"Don't worry sweety, I'm fine. Kohaku is being silly about everything. I know you will do just fine protecting me since you are such a big strong man. When you aren't around I have a big lug of a fox demon and a mean boy to make sure I am fine. I should reward you for being so helpful actually," I said thoughtfully putting one of my fingers to my chin in contemplation. I hugged him closer and walked over to the lollipop display and chose a blue star shaped one for him.

"Here, I think you deserve it, and I have your mom's gift all ready too," I said gently wiping the tears off his face with a smile.

He gave me a brilliant smile, "Thank you so much Rin-san! I still don't think you should have me doing the work though. My daddy protects me and my mommy though… Maybe you should find a daddy too, then you wouldn't be so lonely and he could make sure you're safe, keep you close, and kiss your boo-boos better!" My eyes popped open and I nearly fainted. He was a little boy so obviously he didn't know what he was saying, and in all truth he really didn't say anything that bad, it was just the thoughts that ran through my mind I guess. For a minute Shilulu had a serious expression on her face, then she broke into a fit of silent laughter like Kohaku. I mouthed 'baka hentai's' behind Jenji's back while I got Jenjiro's things together. After he paid for his gift he walked out the door and presented his mother with the strawberries. Though we couldn't hear what was being said, it was pretty easy to guess as she closed the box crying and picked up Jenjiro and swung him around kissing him all over. We smiled at the adorable scene and watched as they waved good-bye before walking down the street. I sighed wishing that could be me again walking down the street with my little boy or girl. I shoved that into the back of my mind again so I could turn back to Shilulu.

"Strangely enough Jenjiro is right Rin. You should think about having a man to help you and protect you," Kohaku said seriously. I shook my head furiously against the thought.

Shilulu growled, "She doesn't need a man to get through her life. She has me and hopefully you as a friend and that is all she needs." Shilulu was adamant on keeping me man free ever since the incident, and she hardly trusted any of the men I was ever around. That was why she absolutely despised the thought of Kohaku coming here the first time.

"Lets just forget it. There is no sense in getting into a fight over a little boy's words," I muttered heading back to the kitchens while Shilulu took over for the register.

* * *

It was around two in the afternoon when the most coincidental thing in history happened. I was at the register helping out a few customers who were either browsing our buying something in the shop. There was a group of little boys looking at jelly beans, a young couple looking at the small sugar sculpture display I had, and an old woman buying a box of candy for her grandchildren. Nothing out of the ordinary at all. Then when I was just finishing up ringing up the old lady's box when the bell on the door rang.

I called out while I worked on the change, "I will be with you in a second!" I gave the woman her receipt and told her a friendly good-bye while we both smiled. I turned to the new customers and a puzzled look came over my face. Before me stood an odd sight.

A small family of three returned my gaze, but with less puzzlement and more observation. The woman was breath taking with long black hair that went a little past her shoulders, and it was held up in a ponytail with a white elastic band. She wore a white blouse, black jeans, and white sandals that all complemented her curvy figure and stunning looks. Her eyes were a deep blue and reflected her happiness that shown in her face as well. It was obvious she wasn't a high school student, but she certainly didn't look like a mother with her figure. But what didn't seem motherly in her body showed in her gaze and her gestures. In her arms was what appeared to be a four or five year old child. He was obviously the child of the two adults due to his unique appearance. The boy had silver hair and overly large, black, puppy ears on his head, and they twitched with each sound that was made in the shop. He had his mothers blue eyes, but mostly the appearance of the man next to them, his father I guessed. His red shirt, little jeans, and sneakers were all ruffled and dusty from apparent running, so the little guy probably was more than a handful for the regal pair. The man who stood next to them was the one who puzzled me the most. I could swear I had seen him before, and at least spoken a few words to him. He was fairly tall, with long silver hair and dog ears just like his son, except they were the proper size for his head. His golden eyes were scrutinizing me, but they didn't seem threatening or arrogant, just curious. He wore regular jeans, a black polo shirt, and black sandals. It was odd to see a man with such a well built and muscled physique wearing a necklace though. They were an odd, but peaceful family, and I felt very warmed by their presence.

"Good afternoon welcome to the Chocolate Pallet, how can I help you," I asked, not wanting to gawk at them and make them feel insulted.

The woman gave an even bigger smile if possible, "We're just browsing, don't worry about us." With that they all started looking around. I watched with amusement as the little boy would point to something and his parents would talk to him about what it was or what it tasted like and such. It was one of the cutest families I had ever seen. After a few minutes the man broke away from his family and came to lean on the counter looking out the window. The silence felt a little awkward so I decided to voice my thoughts.

"Have we met before sir? I keep having this feeling that we have met somewhere before, or that you have come to the shop once before," I sighed at the foolish feeling I had in my gut.

"No I am afraid we haven't. I was recommended here and I just couldn't let the opportunity pass me. The gift basket my son received was excellent, so the shop was diffidently on our list to check out," he said continuing to look out the window. Realization dawned on me.

Gaping I stuttered, " Th..thats… the gift basket I made for him and his nephew. You're related to him? No wonder I thought I had met you before."

He turned his head to me and smirked, "So it's true? My brother actually came in a candy store and bought a gift basket for my son…wow. I am totally speechless. How odd that Sess would do that. I'm guessing that I owe my complements to you then? I must say that the whole family more then enjoyed the gesture and extra effort put into it."

I stuck out my hand, "Well this is an odd turn of events. I'm Rin Omeiya. Your brother's name was Sesshomaru, right?"

He grabbed my hand and then got a perplexed look on his face, "It's nice to meet you Rin, I'm InuYasha Takahashi. Over there is my wife Kagome and our son Kotaru. Sess suggested this place to us. Wait… How do you know what my brother's name is?"

"He told me his name when he came in. Your son is adorable by the way," I smiled at the little boy and his mother. InuYasha nodded.

"They're both rascals though. I have a handful with both of them, but I love them all the same. I find it odd that Sess would have told you his name though. You sure that was my ice cold brother you were serving," he asked seriously. Thinking back I guess I could see why InuYasha called him cold. He diffidently was not one of the most social or outgoing people I had ever met.

I nodded absentmindedly, "There is no way to mistake it. I doubt that there are many golden eyed, silver harried, Inu youkai running around right now." As soon as I said that Kohaku came bursting through the doors.

"Rin, Shilulu needs your help in the kitchen…right…no…," the rest of the sentence died on his lips as he spotted InuYasha. They both had wide eyes.

"What in the hell are you doing here squirt," InuYasha asked loudly. There was a note of teasing and laughter in his voice.

"Well looked what the dog dragged in! If it isn't OLD InuYasha! You still having trouble keeping Kotaru under your watch," he put major emphases on old and laughed the whole time. InuYasha growled at the old part of the sentence.

He sneered slightly, "Just because I have a pup doesn't mean I am old Kohaku. If anything it means I am young because I am more than ready to have more. It keeps you young when you have pups and a mate flying about the place. It would do you good to find a bitch of your own and mate with her. Have some pups and you would be young and vibrant like me. Maybe even help your fighting skills a bit. Take a leaf out of your sisters book, why don't ya'? Just make a better decision than a lecher." I blushed a bit at his extremely crude mouth and was glad to see that none of the customers were listening. I decided to speak up.

"You two know each other? You never told me about this Kohaku," I said.

He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "Yah', well there are things that I don't talk about much to anyone. Sorry Rin. My sister, Sango, is friends with InuYasha's wife, Kagome. InuYasha also knows Miroku, my future brother in law, too. They all went to school together and such. Then Souta Higurashi, you know my friend from high school, is Kagome's little brother, so I have known the family all my life. I don't talk about them much because we are more like family then friends, and I didn't know if you would warm up to them all that much. We are a strange group and all, plus you never were all that social around Souta so I thought that the result would be the same when I introduced you to everyone." InuYasha nodded, confirming the odd tale. I knew that he had every right not to tell me about all this considering the way I used to act. This only made me want to make amends sooner.

"That's okay Kohaku, I understand. So you have a real big family out there I guess despite everything," I questioned. He nodded and decided to move past the subject.

"So what were you two talking about before I came out, and how do you know each other," he said quickly.

I shook my head at his cover up, "We met because his brother suggested the store to him and his family. I remembered Sesshomaru, so he told me a little about himself."

Kohaku nodded, "But why would Sesshomaru suggest the Chocolate Pallet to you InuYasha? I doubt 'Snowy Sess' would have come here ever."

InuYasha smirked, "You saw yourself the result of coming here, Kohaku. You were there for Kotaru's birthday a couple weeks ago. The beautiful gift basket came from here." Kohaku's jaw dropped.

"That basket came from here! No wonder I had a funny feeling about the gift. Go figure that if Sess had said the name of who made it, I would have found Rin earlier than expected. When Kotaru got the basket I assumed that 'Snowy' made it himself, despite the oddity of him spending so much time on a gift for him, cause' no one would help him out." I was puzzled at the last comment.

I decided to question, "Your brother would have the capability to make the same gift basket as me?" I had directed the comment at InuYasha, but Kohaku was the one who answered me.

"Didn't you tell her about Sess' job at the restaurant? I guess you wouldn't have, considering that you two don't know each other that well." He turned to me, "Sesshomaru and InuYasha both work for…" He was cut off at that point.

"Let me tell her Kohaku. It's not like you know everything about it anyway. Me, my brother, and my father, InuTashio, all work at the restaurant Youkai's Requiem. My dad opened it when he was my age and the family has been running it ever since. My brother is the head sous chef while my dad runs everything behind the scenes. I do the accounting and advertisement around Tokyo. Despite the fact that it pains me to say it, Sess is pretty fucking amazing in the kitchen when it comes to making just about any Japanese dish, but when it comes to working with the other chefs he sucks ass. I aint' the most agreeable guy, but I know that what Sess does is just plain sick. Every single chef and waiter in that kitchen is either part of our pack, pissed off at him constantly, or scared shitless of him. I swear that my father has got to be a saint to have to put up with his constant holier-than-thou attitude. He is the equivalent of an ice sculpture when he is around the pack, which is a huge improvement from his usual demeanor. The sad thing is that first thing in the morning everybody avoids him on pain of death because that is when his mood is the worst. I never have figured out why he has such a problem with mornings only, but it is obviously that time of day. I think you might be best off avoiding him altogether if you know what is good for you. I wish I could do it," InuYasha murmured the last part to himself. Kohaku nodded stiffly.

"I know that he only puts up with me, Sango, and Miroku because we are practically part of Kagome's family, and because of that we are part of his pack thanks to InuYasha and Kagome. Mrs. Higurashi and Izayoi, InuYasha's mom, are good friends now, so doing anything to upset Mrs. Higurashi would upset Izayoi, and if something upsets Izayoi and can be changed you better watch out or you will have InuTashio and InuYasha in your face. That's the only reason that Sesshomaru tolerates us. In the end he has such a big god-complex that he believes that the pack is more his then InuTashio's. It is a good thing that InuTashio has a sense of humor with Sess' behavior or else there would of been a huge dog fight by now. The fact that Tai can even joke about how Sess' pups would look and act without getting his head ripped off is a miracle," Kohaku said shaking his head.

InuYasha snorted, "My brother has a small semblance of respect for my father. If he didn't have that by now Sess would be dead by my father's hands, and my dad would be perpetually depressed. I don't know why, but my dad loves my brother just as much as me, which is a lot. What confuses me even more than my father, is how my mother loves him like he is actually her son. The way he treats my mother is despicable. No matter how nice my mom is to him he ignores her. Dad tried to make him except her, but he claims that my mother isn't good enough to be accepted as his mother." The venom dripping from InuYasha's voice was enough to make me want to cringe. I felt like crying at how sorry I felt for Izayoi after her efforts. I never thought the man that had walked into my store could be so cruel to one person. He seemed somewhat stuck up, but not racist.  
InuYasha weakly smiled at me, "Now that you know a good portion of my history I hope that you will consider being part of our pack. It's nice to have a big family, and from what I hear you and your friend need it. Excluding the ice king, you will be welcomed with open arms. You already know Kohaku, Souta, and Sango so your only missing about 20 other people." I was confused for a moment about Souta, but I didn't have long to dwell on it.

There was a loud shout from the kitchens, and then the doors burst open.  
"DUCK AND COVER PEOPLE!!!!" Shilulu came sprinting out of the kitchen and belly slid on the floor covering her head with her hands. A loud explosion sounded from the kitchens and a sickening splattering sound came. Black smoke billowed out the swinging doors, and looking at Shilulu she was covered with black soot. Kohaku and InuYasha fell to the floor laughing hysterically, while I looked appalled at the doors. I don't want to even THINK about the damage that was caused in my brand new kitchen.

Shilulu stood up and dusted herself off then started shouting, "What the hell Rin! I asked you for help and you didn't show! I was standing there forever until I decided I would just make the Baked Alaska myself, though I didn't' know how to make it. That was a complete disaster!" I groaned slapping my forehead now knowing exactly what happened and what the sickening splattering sound had been. At least by some miracle the fire alarm had gone off, but the sprinkler system didn't. Everything in the store would be soaked other wise, and I needed to go turn the sprinklers on, now that I think about it. I looked around the shop to see all the customers had fled at Shilulu's shouting, and Kagome stood with Kotaru clutched tightly to her, her eyes as big as the mega-lollipops I make. Kotaru was coughing slightly at the smoke that tickled his sensitive nose.

"Sorry about this everyone, and Kohaku stop laughing because you are going to be the one helping us clean up," I told him condescendingly. That shut him up really fast.

Kagome and Kotaru looked really confused because they hadn't been part of the conversation, and didn't know that Kohaku helped out here.

InuYasha looked from me to Kohaku and back to Kagome, "Umm…Kagome it is sort of a long story, but this is Rin Omieya, the young lady that helped out Sess and runs this store. It turns out this also the lady that Kohaku is friends with." InuYasha told her and Kotaru what was going on while I shooed Kohaku and Shilulu back into the kitchen to clean up before I went back there to finish the disastrous Baked Alaska. I found it funny that while explaining everything to his family, the man with crude language and bad grammar disappeared. He must have been really dedicated to his son if he acted slightly different, just so Kotaru could be raised in a better environment. After he was finished I was engulfed in a hug from Kagome.

"Oh, I am so happy that we get to finally meet you and everything. I can assure you that everyone will make you feel right at home with us, and you will love the company. Our pack loves get-together's and you will fit right in if you like to be around Kohaku and Souta ," Kagome bubbled. If it wasn't apparent that Kagome was a happy and good natured person before it was more than clear now. InuYasha coughed behind her.

"Kagome, I think we should probably get going. It's starting to get late and we need to get to my parents house. Why don't we pick up a dessert for later so my mom won't have to make everything." She nodded, and turned back to me.

"Rin do you think you make something quick up for us? We have to get going unfortunately," Kagome said. I nodded and walked back into the kitchen to survey the damage to see if it would be possible to make anything quickly. I was astounded to see that the damage wasn't as bad as it had seemed and sounded. Other than the room being black and had a layer of meringue(pronounced mar-an-ge) everything was unaffected. I went and opened up the ridge and was relived that it was fine on the inside too. To my surprise there was a pre-prepared angle food cake already made, which would make my job a lot easier. I quickly boxed it up on a clear, plastic, platter and tied a green ribbon around it to keep it shut. The box was white with the design of a paint pallet with a cake on top all over in light carmel-ish brown. As soon as I finished I took it back outside ignoring the stares of Shilulu and Kohaku. I placed it on the counter and sighed. I had so many questions I wanted to ask them about before they left, but I knew that they had things to do.

"I hope you don't mind that it's angle food cake but that was the best we could do on short notice," I smiled. Kagome and InuYasha nodded while, InuYasha pulled his wallet out.

I waved my hands frantically, "No, no. You don't need to pay me. This is complements of the chef. I owe you quite a bit and I want to thank you for today." We all bickered for a few minutes on the matter of payment, but in the end they gave in, knowing that time was running short. InuYasha handed me a card right before they left.

"That has my personal information on it, and the information on the restaurant. Come visit sometime if you want. If anything… bad happens let me know so we can all help. In my eyes you are already part of the pack in a way, so protection is essential." With that he nodded and we all said our good-bye's.

As soon as they were out of site I bolted into the kitchen.  
"KOHAKU! Did you say something to InuYasha and his family about my accident? I told you not to tell anyone," I shouted. He looked terribly startled, and Shilulu immediately started growling at him. In the back of my mind I regretted saying this in front of Shilulu because the last thing I wanted to do was give her another reason that made her distrust him. Now wasn't the time for regret though because I was furious with him myself.

Kohaku sighed and shook his head a little, "I told them that you had been in a bad spot a little while ago, and that was the reason why you stopped calling me. I never told them details or anything, I swear!" I sighed and slid down the wall to sit with my head in my hands.

"Kohaku, I really didn't want that brodcasted at all. I know you might have needed to say something at one point or another for some reason, but I… This is just really hard on me, even now. The more people know about it the harder it is for me to just forget it. I need to get on in my life, and thinking about what had happened keeps me from doing that," I muttered from my position. I didn't want to, but I started sobbing a little and hiccuping. Shilulu came and pulled me into her lap once she sat down, rocking me back and forth, like she had done so many times on so many other occasions, related to this subject or not. I was so grateful because comforting contact helped me calm faster. I heard Kohaku move in the distance.

"I am so sorry Rin. I would never mean to do any harm to you at all. Please forgive me because I don't want you to be mad at me. It was hard not having you around all those months ago, and I don't want to lose you as a friend again. I'm so sorry…," he trailed off and I heard him leave the kitchen, then the shop all together. I would forgive him later, but right now I was having a mental breakdown for reliving some of the moments when I spoke earlier. I have recently become so fragile and easy to upset that it is a wonder anyone stays around me anymore. I wouldn't blame them if they didn't. When I got like this, I would waste all my energy sobbing and remembering my experiences. It could take anywhere from an hour to a day for me to recover and then I was something of a comatose state for a while. At one point or another I might black out temporarily and have sporadic nightmares. This really was a horrible thing to go through.

I could already feel that I was beginning to black out, as my vision was starting to get fuzzy. Shilulu was fishing around in her pockets while she continued rocking me and whispering calming words. Before I knew it, she had picked me up and left the shop. She locked the doors and turned the shop sign to closed, and with that we were off. By that point I had blacked out completely and I couldn't remember anything after that. I tried blinking several times to stay with her, but it was already to late… I was slowly shutting down.

* * *

When I came to, I was lying on a couch in the second story of Shilulu's studio, with a view out the window to the streets below. I knew that I should probably let Shilulu know I am awake, but I wanted time to think about the earlier events before facing my other demons, together or not. So much had happened in the last 24 hours that I feel really overwhelmed. The children in the shop, meeting InuYasha's family, learning about the man that came to our shop, friendship, and Kohaku's misunderstanding, all just waiting for me to contemplate them. For some reason Sesshomaru Takahashi was the first thing to pop up in my mind for contemplation.

It seemed that Mr. Takahashi had everyone, including his own family, stumped. I diffidently was… Why was it that he was cold, yet formally polite in my shop, but apparently he was a total jerk and ass wipe in real life? His actions really didn't make any sense when I looked at what InuYasha said, so I came to the conclusion there must be another side to the story that no one really knows. His behavior in the morning did make sense though… He obviously just wasn't a morning person. Maybe I can help him with that, yes, I think that is what I will do! If everyone at Youkai's Requiem is having such a crapy morning then I will help them out a little. I need to do a little research first on how many people are there first thing in the morning, but other than that I can really make Mr. Takahashi have a good morning! I should probably prepare everything tonight before hand and then take it to them as fresh as it can be. If I did this right, maybe I would save a couple chefs and InuYasha from decapitation. If anything I am surprised he hasn't already befallen a swift death considering that mouth of his… I just hope that in the end this helps out more than hinders. With my mind made up, I called Shilulu so that we could relax, and start our relaxation and goof-off Friday evenings a little early. The last thing I wanted to do was think anymore…

_

* * *

_

_An: … and that is how I feel at this point too Rin. This story really is great, but I sort of had to force this last part out of me. For some reason I didn't really have any clue what to say. I knew what needed to be included, but everything else was a mystery. Read and Review if you feel like it, and remember that I appreciate them a lot and will start responding to all the ones I get now. I really don't have much of a life… _


	4. The Origin's Of Orange Juice

Candy Fit For A Demon Lord  
Chapter 4

The Origin's of Orange Juice

_AN: Hey Everyone! Oh I feel so special after all your reviews that were so nice! I also realize the problem with the last chapter and the spacing. When I looked at the preview of the chapter the spacing was normal so I don't understand why the chapter had those problems. I won't have that problem again though. I want everyone to start commenting on the content of the chapter not my stupid mistakes, so I promise it will be better. People still haven't told me their opinions on the lemon or no lemon situation so I will remind you that I need those votes so I can work with my editor and planning on the plot myself. As everyone has wished, Sess will finally make it into this chapter. I know that you have all been waiting for it and so have I! Rin's past is something of a mystery but that is something that you will all understand at a later time. Thanks for all the support I am getting on this fic and I hope that you all enjoy this segment of Candy Fit For A Demon Lord chapter 4!_

_Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN InuYasha! Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I don't own My Neighbor Totoro, that goes to Hayo Miazaki. The rights to Hershey's don't belong to me either or any other brand I might mention._

* * *

"Okay do I have everything?"

I looked around myself at the two large baskets laden with breakfast treats. Maybe this might make a difference down at the Youkai's Requiem. This morning I got Shilulu to drive me down to the store at four to make a breakfast basket for the restaurant to try saving InuYasha from being decapitated by his older brother and everyone else. I don't think they get the best breakfast starting out so early in the morning, so this can take away some slight burden. Maybe that's why Sesshomaru-san is always grumpy? Probably not I sighed dejectedly. I took a final stock of my gifts before walking out the door and re-locking the store until I came back later. It took a bit of last night to find it, but I managed to find directions to the Youkai's Requiem. It is actually something of a short distance from here, but because I am carrying two huge baskets, I decided to hail a taxi instead. My leg has been feeling funny lately anyway

After I told the man the directions to the restaurant and my fear, I thought about what led me to do this. After I had retired for the night, literally video-game wise, I thought about everything InuYasha had said. He had seemed to have despised this brother with a burning passion, but I also saw some regret that they were so separated in everything. I knew that, from Kohaku, if siblings didn't get along, that the younger one was always much more upset, and would want to take initiative to repair the mangled relations. It was instinct, was the way he had said it. I knew this was genuine because Sango and Kohaku, at a point long ago, had never gotten along, but with the death of their mother, he decided to make the repairs. They had both realized the mistake they had made. The last thing I wanted happening was that InuYasha and Sesshomaru would have to go through that. I felt it was my duty to do something about this because no one else was obviously doing anything, and they took for granted what I didn't have. It is meddling, but I felt it was to justified that awkwardness didn't have room in my book right now.

I got a little worried as I saw the restaurant approaching through the window, and for a second I had the urge to tell the man to either turn around or pass it up a few blocks, but I clenched my teeth and refused to stop now. Sadly, I said this out loud and the driver gave me funny looks. I was embarrassed but I ignored it because I had become somewhat used to it by now. Hesitantly, I paid the man and took my baskets out, gaping at the restaurant in awe. It was very large for a restaurant, and I finally understood why this place always had a billion customers. The food was good, so was the atmosphere, and they could fit a hell of a lot of people. Well, here goes nothing I thought...

I hadn't really thought about what I was going to do when I got here, but I decided to go with my instincts and wing it. The 'requiem' wasn't open until eleven, but the Takahashi family and pack got here at five in the morning to do business meetings, start early preparations, and inventory so that they wouldn't have to do it when they close. I desperately hoped that the door would be unlocked By some miracle the kami's granted me, I was able to just go in. Inside the gigantic room, hundreds of tables lined the walls with chairs stacked on top of them. I had an urge to set down the baskets and start dancing across the well polished hard wood. Shilulu would have heartily approved of it, no doubt.

"Hello," I called out somewhat quietly. A rustling behind a nearby wooden door came to my attention, and I watched hesitantly. Slowly, a man emerged that looked eerily similar to both InuYasha and Sesshomaru. He had a different, more muscled and wide, build that his sons, I'm assuming, didn't have. He actually even seemed, though I thought it was impossible, taller than both of them. He was diffidently a big person. The only other thing that was really different about him was that he had a different facial structure then both of his sons, along with only two stripes going down his face. Come to think of it each of the Takahashi men that I had seen so far each had a different facial structure how odd.

"Umm Hi. Mr. Takahashi, I presume? I'm Rin Omeiya. Sorry for intruding like this, and I hope I'm not interrupting, or anything," I babbled quickly realizing that I had been starring. He didn't seem like the type to like introductions at all, but he seemed oddly surprised by what I had said.

He chuckled and spoke, "Well, hello Miss. Omeiya. I have heard so much about you from InuYasha. Now, what would you be doing here on such an early morning?"

I blushed, embarrassed by my actions, "Well II You see, I-I heard that you come down to the restaurant r-really early in the morning and that InuYasha and Sesshomaru fight, so I thought I would try breaking the ice by bringing breakfast."

"Wow. Well, this is an honor to have you here then! I never imagined someone acting on InuYasha and Sesshomaru's behalf," he said stunned.  
I smiled, but jumped when a yell came from the kitchen way across the rooms and halls. InuTashio sighed, and shook his head, obviously not finding it at all worrying. He beckoned me to a table in one of the other rooms so that I could set up the small buffet that could probably feed an entire army, as Shilulu usually put it.

"I'm more than a little impressed, my lady. This is amazing for you to have done on your own, and I feel guilty knowing that you did all this within the kindness of your heart," InuTashio said stunned as I filled up several square feet of space with pastries, fruits, yogurt, orange juice, other types of juice, tea's, specialty foods from America, and a couple European delicacies thrown in too, for good measure.

"As I said earlier Mr. Takahashi, it is my pleasure, without a doubt," I said as I put the finishing touches on the meal.

He sighed, "Well at least call me Tai. Mr. Takahashi is way to formal for me, and I think that title officially goes to my son. I never thought that I would be more outgoing then one of my own sons "

Another loud yell was heard from the kitchens, and this time I heard rushed foot steps and InuYasha's yelling.

"DAD! FLUFFY IS TRYING TO CUT OFF MY EARS AGAIN TO USE IN TONIGHTS DINNER SPECIAL!"

"You continue to criticize my work though you do not belong in the kitchen or anywhere near it! The only time that Hanyou's should be in the kitchen is so that artists like me have the ability to cut you up and serve you on a platter!"

Tai sighed, "Sesshomaru, you know that Inu's ears would completely ruin tonight's soup special, so leave them out. Way too tough. Come in here you two, though. We have a guest that is being ungraciously ignored." Inu, who had already been running, skidded to a halt a few feet from us. He not only gaped at me, but also at the now heavily laden table.

A few seconds later, Sesshomaru walked in, but he looked very different from how he had first looked when I met him. Now he was in all his chefly glory. Yes I do know that chefly isn't a word gosh. He had on white pants that matched his apron aroundd his waist and specially designed shirt for working around the kitchen. Black shoes and a hair tie to keep his hair up along with the funny white chef's hat, accentuated his look. What really completed the look was the butcher knife resting at his side, which I assumed was the weapon currently threatening Inu's ears. He had an odd look on his face, but it reminded me of elegant nostalgia more than anything else. Why nostalgia, I will never know

"Rin, what in the world is this," Inu questioned, still supporting the fish look.

I blushed and shuffled my feet again, "I thought you guys could use some breakfast so early in the morning. I'm sorry if you don't like it. I'll just pack it up and leave as soon as I can "

"No, wait! I didn't mean it like that at all! Don't put words in my mouth for me. This is amazing, and I really appreciate it, it's just why in the world would you do it? I don't recall asking," Inu said.

"I really don't know what possessed me to do it, I just did it," I muttered.

"Wow well thanks a lot!" I smiled at his appreciative smile, and I realized why Kagome must have married this man. Beyond the harsh exterior, he really was a softy underneath and had a truly beautiful and genuine smile.

"I don't know what the situation is here, but I should probably do introductions. Dad, pain in the ass, this is Rin Omeiya, the lady who runs the Chocolate Pallet. She was the one who made Kotaru's gift basket, and is the most fantastic sweet shop owner," InuYasha said winking at her and chuckling. InuTashio nodded and bowed again. Sesshomaru stepped forward and bowed also, but he was very cold and he glared at me the whole time. The thought that he could hate humans like me so thoroughly was very disconcerting to me. I decided that Mr. Lemon Bar wouldn't like to play around with me at all, so it would be best to leave him alone. I felt a little sad, but I wasn't sure why.

"Well boy's, lets dig into this amazing banquet we have been given before it gets cold. Ms. Omeiya, would you like to stay and join us this morning?" Tai said.

I shook my head quickly, "I'm sorry Mr.Taka… I mean Tai. I need to get going and start my day. I wish I could stay, but enjoy everything, and tell me what you think next time you see me. I love feedback!" And with that I left.

* * *

Later that night, I was sitting in my apartment, thinking about what had happened today. I guess that things hadn't happened like I wanted them too. I had hoped to see Sesshomaru lighten up a little, even though I wouldn't probably know what it looked like even if he did. He diffidently fit the description of Inu's well painted picture. From now on if I did bring breakfast to the Youkai's Requiem, it would only be to give the Takahashi men something to eat, not to make a difference in their lives. I was stupid to even think one breakfast would change Sesshomaru's entire life anyway.

I worked on my paper work after I had my epiphany, and tried to relax. My leg really has been killing me lately. I should probably go see the doctor soon about it As soon as I thought that I got a phone call.

"Moshi, Moshi," I yawned into the phone. It was late after all.

"Rin? I'm sorry to be calling so late, but I really wanted to talk to you," InuYasha's voice drifted over the line.

I was startled, "InuYasha? What in the world is going on? Is everything all right?"

He chuckled, "Everything is fine Rin. I just wanted to thank you for everything you did today. Sess was in a favorable mood today, and didn't threaten to kill anyone. It was truly something unique. I was wondering, if it wasn't to much trouble, that you might make another breakfast for the staff. Everything was delicious, and my father nearly flipped when he found out everything was homemade. Everyone was thoroughly impressed.  
Don't worry, we would be more than happy to pay for it too."

My mouth hung open for a few minutes. I had made a difference! Oh My God! I just couldn't believe it, "Are you sure? I didn't realize I had any difference at all! I would love to cater for you in the mornings. I can deal with the extra stuff to do." I happily twirled around the apartment in my bubble gum socks skidding along the wood floor.

He laughed, "Great! I'll tell my dad and we'll see you tomorrow, I guess? You don't need to worry about Mondays or the weekend, we can fend for ourselves then."

"Of course," I squealed, "Don't worry about at a thing. I will have something ready for tomorrow. Good night InuYasha," and with that I hung up, and spun around a couple more times. I was so excited! I actually made a difference! Maybe I would eventually get to see how much of a  
difference I was making, but until then I would just be happy knowing InuYasha could see it. I yawned finally realizing how much my leg was killing me and how tired I was. I had an early day tomorrow, so I needed to get as much sleep as possible. I went into my bedroom, took off my leg brace as gently as I could so I wouldn't jostle it and cause myself more pain, took a couple of aspirin, dressed in my favorite pair of lollipop Pj's, and slipped into bed. The last thing I thought about was how odd it seemed to want to help out a man so much, who wanted nothing to do with me.

On the other side of town, InuYasha hung up the phone after his call to Rin. He sighed deeply, and rubbed his face tiredly. It had been a long day.

"Do you really think it was the right thing to do by telling her that? I know you want Rin to be happy and to not have to live a lonely life, but what you are doing just doesn't seem right," Kagome said from the door way. She was dressed in her Pj's and was rocking a sleeping Kotaru back and forth.

"I'm hoping I did the right thing to Kagome, but I won't know until I see how they react together. Sess may have been just as surly as ever today, but you never know. Maybe, after a while of her coming, she really will make him act like a human being instead of me just claming that's what happened.

She sighed, "All right. I'll trust your decision for now, but if Rin gets hurt, I'm gonna make you stop. She deserves a peaceful life that isn't meddled in by her friends. InuYasha nodded and he went over to kiss Kotaru's forehead. He and Kagome went and put him to bed, before heading to their own room. Everyone seemed to be completely exhausted that day…

* * *

_AN: Well this is the end of chapter four. I really wasn't very happy with this chapter at all, but it is necessary for the plot sadly. I hope that the next chapter will be a little more exciting and funny so everyone isn't bored to tears. At least Sesshomaru finally made it into the story! It's about time considering this is a romance fic between him and Rin, huh? I'm actually gonna start the next chapter right now so that I can get exactly what I want down now, and come back and not have forgotten where I was going. I promise the pace will pick up a bit in the next few chapters! I appreciate any comments and suggestions so that I know if you want things slow, fast, funny, or whatever This really was a sucky part though, wasn't it?  
_


	5. Rain Stained Ribons

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 5: Rain Stained Ribbons

_An: pops head out of hole and shakes dirt out of hair looking around warily Hello Everyone! All I have to say is… IT'S NOT MY FAULT!!! I really didn't want to keep you waiting this long for the next chapter, but problems occurred with my computer. I'm currently mourning the loss of my drawings that weren't backed up, to give you a hint. I have other things I have been working on and I am busy as a real person. I promise to continue writing this story, and I will try to update more frequently too. I have a special thanks too Beaner93 who is too kind in her voting and extensive commentary every chapter hands out basket filled with jellybeans and lollipops. To everyone who reviewed I hand you a giant lollipop that Rin makes personally with your choice of flavor and shape, and your choice of a cookie to those of you who are just reading. As Beaner93 suggested, when Sesshomaru can make more than two facial expressions it might just be the end of the world. With that, TO THE STORY!! pops back into hole and starts typing furiously while cuddling a mole_

_Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN InuYasha!!! He belongs to Rumiko Takahashi so I only barrow the characters. I also don't own Hershey's Chocolates, and I have no idea who it belongs to now, so also don't sue for that. Anything else probably belongs to someone else if stated. I own the plot and one or two characters…that's it. _

* * *

"Oh for Pete's sake," I screamed for the fifth time that day. I had lost count of the boxes in the back for the billionth time while taking inventory. A lack of sleep was finally taking its toll on me, though I would never admit it.

I heard a loud crashing coming from the kitchen, and a stampede come barreling through the door, "Rin! What in kami's name is it now?" Shilulu was red in the face and obviously panicked as hell. I had been screaming all day, so she was pretty close to putting me in a psycho ward permanently.

Upon seeing me in one piece she sighed rubbing her temples,"Rin, you are obviously sleep deprived beyond the point of being useful, much less non-comatose. You are going to sleep in tomorrow even if I have to strap you to the bed. This is really ridiculous. What is the point of catering for those people anyway?" Shilulu obviously didn't understand at all because I needed to keep bringing breakfast to the Youkai's Requiem. InuYasha was claiming that I was making progress with Sesshomaru, though I never saw it first hand, but I believed him. Why would InuYasha lie to me about something like that anyway?

"Shilulu I really need to continue delivering, it's important to me! I'm fine. It's just a little stress, that's all", I muttered trying to appease her anger at the Takahashi family. I never really would understand why she hated so many people, yet she held firm. There was something about the Takahashi family that pissed her off to no end, most likely Sesshomaru's hostile attitude to me. She had heard the stories of how he was more than a little frosty to me, and how he held grudges against most people who were human. No matter what I tried to do, all I really succeeded in was pissing him off further.

"No Rin, I'm not letting you go. If it makes you feel better I will let you go tomorrow, but only to drop the shit off, and to tell them that you can't keep catering. They will understand if they know what is good for them," she said as she cracked her knuckles threateningly. I sighed and nodded, knowing that if Shilulu had made up her mind about my well being, there was little use fighting it. I was probably better off stopping anyway. Maybe I could do something else for them instead…

The thing that made me most disappointed at this change was the fact that I wouldn't get to see any of the Takahashi's as much anymore. I had grown close to InuYasha and InuTashio over the past couple months. InuTashio was just as he had been described, gentle, caring, and very rambunctious. He almost had more energy than Kotaru on a sugar high, which I saw on somewhat of a regular basis. InuYasha was still very gruff, but willing to let me spend time with his family, and talk to me when he felt like it. I would miss Sesshomaru too, though why was something beyond me. He was just as cold and ruthless, from what I could tell, as before. I would like to just smack him sometimes for being so rude and harsh. The way he treated people really was just unacceptable. Underneath it all, he was most likely a decent person, he just couldn't show it for the life of him…

* * *

As my alarm clock started beeping furiously and my hand slammed down on it, I realized for the first time in my life that being a morning person sucked, and I absolutely despised mornings officially. My current sleep deprived state be damned, no one should ever have to wake up in any other form than naturally! Groaning as any person would, I blearily opened my eyes to look out my window and be shocked by the tremendous down poor that was taking place. Though we did get rain in Tokyo, it was just beyond weird to see this heavy of a storm right now. When my brain really started to work, I realized I had to go out and flag down a cab in this stuff, and carry all the breakfast items around. At this point I was really close to screaming and crying in a complete melt down at all the things that I just had to deal with right now. The normal part of my mind that is used to control me (that sadly had to take a back seat after the accident) was telling me to get my butt in gear and just brave the rain like any other time. But my current panicky, over reactive, childish side was throwing a complete fit and refused to allow me to think through the mess in any logical way. 

It took so long for me to get in control of my feelings -- longer than usual I might add -- that I was horribly late by the time I got out of bed. I had to forgo a shower and breakfast just to get a start that was decent enough to give me anytime, and in the back of my mind I was more terrified than any other time in my life. Walking out the door, everything was hazy, like something out of a fading dream in the morning or how a superbly drunk person sees, and I knew that my sleep deprivation was suddenly catching up with me, and making my life a little more than dangerous. I diffidently knew I had a problem when I walked outside without a jacket, and the pouring rain had absolutely no effect in waking up my body.

Do you know how terrifying it is to suddenly have a time lapse where you don't remember anything at all that just happened? Because if it doesn't scare the shit out of you, you need to get yourself checked out. After I was on the sidewalk outside my apartment at five thirty in the morning I had a major lapse. The next thing I knew I was in a cab on my way downtown with the cab driver sending me worried looks over her shoulder. Everything was such a blur that I couldn't even begin to tell you if we were a few feet or a few miles from my home, and in the back of my mind a panic started to set in at my lack of coherency in all aspects. I was in an unfamiliar place, not even able to tell where I was much less defend myself in an emergency, and to top it all off, there was no way to tell where the hell I told the cab driver to go. I could have told her the west outskirts of town for all I knew at that point. That panic only grew as I blacked out for the second time in a row, and lost all awareness of my surroundings as they were shrouded in black. Shuddering deeply, I woke up for the second time to the woman shaking my shoulder.

"Ma'am, this is the place, but are you sure you are supposed to be here? I can take you back," she said with fear and worry in her eyes. I looked out the window and squinted hard, trying to see where we were. Finally, my eyes focused somewhat, and I could tell we were about a block from the restaurant. Because my judgment was heavily lacking, I paid the woman without another word, I think I probably gave her fifty on accident, and stepped out onto the sidewalk as she drove away. With my baskets in tow, I trudged on hardly noticing where I was going. Within seconds, my clothes were soaked to the bone, along with the baskets. Black continued to cloud my peripheral vision, and sirens continued going off in the back of my mind. No cars were on the street at this hour, and any pedestrians that might have been walking were either sleeping in their beds or taking the subway. My feet stumbled over each other as I swayed from side to side, nearly slipping in the shallowest puddles. Despite every set back in the world, I moved as swiftly possible onward through the rain.

After about ten minutes of the slowest walking ever, I was across the street from the Youkai's Requiem. Relived that I didn't have to go any farther, I crossed the street with a dopey smile ready to black out once again. Then, halfway to the median, two bright lights grew bright as the currently invisible sun, and in my shock, I allowed myself to close my eyes and let the darkness swallow me again for the last time...

* * *

"Dad, Hurry up! We should call an ambulance or something," a rough panicked voice penetrated my deep sleep. 

"InuYasha, keep a cool head and sit down. I'll get right on it, just keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't get any worse," a much more calm and deep voice supplied. What in the world was going on? Maybe I should try to open my eyes, but they were too heavy to lift all of a sudden, how strange. My body randomly started shivering uncontrollably. It felt like I was encased by black ice and couldn't get out or see anything nearby.

"InuYasha you baka! You aren't even doing anything right! Look how she is shivering, you need to cover her up and get her out of her wet clothes when that happens," a new voice penetrated my sleep. This one sounded familiar like all the other ones, but I just couldn't get passed my sleep muddled brain to remember who they all were.

"Get out of here you hentai! I'll undress her once you're gone," the rough and still panicked voice responded. I heard footsteps leave the room, after I swore I heard the voice say, "You better take good care of her or else your life is at forfeit." I blacked out again.

* * *

My body was stirring and the first thing I thought was, "Oh, shit. I know that for a fact this isn't where I'm supposed to be, this just doesn't feel right at all." It took a while, but I wrestled my eye lids open enough to look around. I wasn't too surprised to see that I was in the hospital. There is a point when you have been to a place so many times that you just know when your there, whether or not you want to be. After my eyes adjusted some more to the harsh bright lighting, I was able to see that Shilulu was sitting in the chair next to my bed reading a book, with a less than happy look on her face. I knew it wasn't the book that was causing that because it happened to be her favorite humor/romance novel. She was upset with me… 

"You know, we have awful memories in this place," I heard her whisper," I thought we promised each other that we would never come back here for any reason. We were passed this, right? Let's just not have a repeat."

I shook my head as best I could, "I agree lets just get out of this place. I don't even want to know what happened or anything, I just want to go home."

She smiled lightly, "You sure about that? Because there is a very interesting story about how you ended up here. Apparently, you nearly got hit by a truck after you passed out, and according to InuYasha who saw you coming, Sesshomaru Taisho himself came bolting out into the street and scooped you out of death's clutches. I'm afraid your breakfast basket didn't fare so well, though." I blushed a shade of red I was unaware existed. Sesshomaru actually saved me, even when he hated me so much? This was too good to be true.

"Okay Shi-chan, I will believe that in a million years. Stop pulling my leg", I blustered. She knew how this would affect me. "It's true! I heard this all from InuYasha and InuTaisho themselves", she exclaimed.

I sighed, "Well all right, but it doesn't matter, and he won't do it again. Maybe, it was just a one time random act of kindness sort of thing, anyway. Can we go soon?"

"Yeah as soon as the doctor comes in and checks you out. Trust me, I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary anyway", she stated.

We waited for what seemed like hours, as I warded away unwanted memories of past experiences. A couple of times, I was unsuccessful in my warding, and ended up in Shilulu's lap crying my eyes out and begging to leave. She, like always, just held me until I settled down and just patted me and dried my tears. This was almost like a routine to her, and only showed me how lucky I was to have a friend like her with me. When the doctor finally came it was like a gift sent from heaven and hell at the same time.

"Well Miss Omieya, you diffidently took quite a spill. We took a good look, and from what we can tell, you've been over working yourself on too little sleep. Your leg has diffidently been acting up, so the key to recovery is rest. We will release you, as long as you make sure that for two days, at least, you stay in bed and don't do anything that resembles work. We have a prescription for some sleep medication, and pain medication for your leg, as well. Once you are up and about, take it easy will you? Get at least eight hours of sleep, and eat enough to get your weight back up. Can you make sure that you do all that", he asked.

"Don't worry doctor, I will make sure that she personally does everything, and that nothing like this happens again", Shilulu said. She saluted him and bowed, before marching over to the other side of the room to get a bag.

The doctor snorted,"Well then, good day to you both, and take it easy. I will sign you out at the front desk, and you two are free to go." He nodded to both of us and left. I think this has got to be the second most relived time I have left the hospital.

Standing outside the Youkai's Requiem during twilight has got to be the highlight of this week. Sitting on my ass was horrible, but Nazi Shillulu of the Third Reich would have skinned me alive and eaten me for lunch if I had lifted a finger beyond paper work and the occasional trip to the bathroom. All week, Shilulu and Kohaku had been putting over time into the shop, while I was at home on doctors orders. Kohaku had nearly bust his eyes out when he heard, and the bouquet the size of his head and the two gallons of chicken noodle soup obviously meant that he cared and was concerned for my well being. Though I wasn't sick, it was still a nice gesture. It was hell knowing that the store didn't have me working there at the moment, but it was a little nice to have a break of doing nothing. After two days, I stood around like a moron after demanding that either Shilulu or Kohaku dropped me off at the 'Requiem'. I wanted to apologize and thank them for everything, but I felt a little nervous, despite myself. It was now or never, so with the last of my courage, I proudly pushed open the doors into the restaurant…

* * *

_ AN// Well… I decided to put a cliffhanger. Don__'__t worry the next chapter is pretty much ready when I want it to be so it won__'__t be half a year before you get it. This story just sort of took a back seat to my school I__'__m afraid. I__'__m such a nerd… Anyway the story is back on and I will be updating once every two weeks and I have monkeys on my back to make sure I stick to that now. BYE!!_


	6. Disasterous Dinner Date

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Disastrous Dinner Date-

_An: / Wow… We are finally getting into the fundamentals of Sesshomaru and Rin's relationship now, and they will actually be speaking more than five words to each other! This is so exciting for me, it gives me goose bumps. By the way, I officially fail at describing dresses, so don't comment on that please! Major thanks to my betas The Snickerdoodle Alchemist, and Stop Reading My Pen Name, and Maddie as always. They all more than inspired me for this chapter. Please, I beg of you all, read my stories Strawberry Kisses, and Youkai Check Mate! They are both really good! I don't own Strawberry Kisses, as it was a gift, but it is really good. And, Youkai Check Mate won't get much trafic becuase it is a family InuTaisho/Sesshomaru fic. It's really good though. Anyways, I don't have much to say now, other than go read Vitreous by: hateshi and lets get on with the story!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha! All rights go to Rumiko Takahashi. Any other brand name I mention, i.e. Hershey's, I don't own either. Don't sue me please!_

When I got to the other side of the door, I was surprised to see that the restaurant had a fair amount of people already there. It was funny that I had completely forgotten that this was one of the most popular restaurants in Tokyo. The waitress at the booth glanced at my attire reproachfully, jeans and a tee shirt that said "Angel food" with an angel eating angel food cake.

"Welcome to the Youkai's Requiem. Do you have a reservation," she said so cheerfully that I thought she was an animatronic robot briefly.

"Umm… no. I was hoping I could get an audience with Takahashi-san this evening," I mumbled blushing. When I really got down to it, I hadn't thought through this plan at all.



"Hmm… well I'll go see if he is busy. You do mean InuTaisho Takahashi-san, right? I can't help you otherwise."

I gasped, "Yes of course. I would never want to see that jerk Sesshomaru!" Then I realized my outcry and blushed stuttering.

The waitress gave me an odd look, and then scurried off in the direction of Tai's office. Inwardly, I cursed myself for being so stupid. Why the hell was I doing this? I should just leave now…

Right as I turned to leave, Tai's office door was thrown open and he came galloping out with the waitress in tow. He had such a huge grin on his face; I was worried that he had been smoking something.

When he reached me, I was squashed by his huge hug. His voice was like a giant boom, "Rin! You're alive! We were so worried when we didn't hear anything." The whole restaurant stared at us, and I did have to admit we made an odd couple. Then he shoved us in the direction of his office. As soon as we were both seated he went off.

"Oh, Rin, I'm so glad you're alright! When I saw Sesshomaru drag you in the other day, I thought you… I thought the worst. Then we didn't hear anything from you, and it just cemented everything in my head. Kagome had been an absolute wreck, and we haven't heard a thing out of Kohaku. How are you?" The rush of questions startled me.

"I… I'm fine, I just," I blushed madly," I wanted to come and thank Sesshomaru-san for saving me the other day. He made a great sacrifice, and I respect him for that."

He raised his eyebrow," Oh… Well I'll go get him so you can talk to him personally."



"NO! Please just give him the message, and tell him I am indebted to him. If he ever needs a favor I'm right around the corner. No need to call him," I rushed out, as my face flooded a cherry red and I waved my hands franticly.

He grinned manically," No, no. I insist that you tell him face to face." He rushed out the door before I could stop him.

I rushed around the kitchen as orders spilled in from the evening guests. It seemed that every night was this busy now a day, and sometimes it became tiresome, but food is my passion, and I wouldn't give it up for the world. I barked orders out to the frightened chefs around me, and I felt a sense of pride at being able to make them cower in fear. As I was working on a large dish of Tamari rice balls, I heard the booming voice of my father that stopped all the rushing around me.

"It's good to see such hard workers here tonight. I'm honored to be in this kitchen again knowing it is running so smoothly. Sesshomaru, I'm afraid, will need to leave you for a while now, though," he thundered across the silent kitchen. I gave him a blank stare, asking why he would be disturbing me from my work environment. He only gave me a smirk as he pushed open the swinging doors and ushered me towards his office. As we were just about to go in, he stopped me from entering.

"Sesshomaru," he whispered," Rin Omeiya is inside, and has come to thank you for your generosity in saving her life. I think that is the most ridiculous thing ever that she took time out of her busy day just to say thank you to someone who has been so rude to her."



I growled," You took time out of my even busier day just for this? Then again you never really have had a concept of good timing, father. What is the real reason you brought me here and stopped me from just taking the compliment and leaving?"

He fidgeted slightly," Well, I was thinking that since she had gone to all that trouble, nearly killing herself in the process, that we could invite her over here for a private dinner?"

"And, this would involve me how?"

"Well, I was planning on having you ask her."

The answer came to me before I could even think about it," No, never in a million years would I take a human on a date."

He, embarrassingly enough, got down on his knees," Please Sesshomaru! All I'm asking is one night for a couple hours, nothing else! It would make both me and you feel better for all the trouble she went through."

I sighed," Why can't you do it, or InuYasha and his mate? There is absolutely no reason for me to be the one to thank her."

"Well, I was planning on having you do it day after tomorrow on Friday, and that night I have plans with Izayoi, InuYasha and Kagome are babysitting, and Sango and Miroku are going out on a double date with Kouga and Ayame. Everyone's booked except you," he muttered ticking off the options on his fingers.

"And if I'm out here entertaining the human, who will run the kitchen?"

My father smiled, sensing I was giving in despite my wishes," we would do just like right now. Your second in command takes over, and an extra person is called in to fill the absence. You won't even think 

about how fast the time will fly by, Sess. Before you know it you will be back in the kitchen with the… get together far behind you. Say you will do it please?"

"Fine, but if I have one complaint after this ridiculous thing, you will never hear the end of it," I snarled and shoved the door open. Inside the Omeiya girl was twiddling her thumbs nervously.

Right as she was about to blurt out some meaningless garbage, I interrupted and decided to get the stupid set up over with, without even bothering to sit down," You will accompany me Friday night for dinner. Wear something decent, and be here by seven. Good bye." I flew back to the kitchen before she could even gather her thoughts, much less her jaw. Thank god that was over.

'What in the world just happened?' was the only thing that was running through my head for the next five minutes. Nothing seemed to make any sense anymore.

"Well, I think that went fantastic! Normally you can't get three words out the stiff, and you got a get together and two whole sentences! I commend you on your greatness," InuTaisho said as he swept into a bow.

I blushed and shook my head," No, that certainly wasn't anything to commend me on! What even began to inspire him to ask me out, much less not wait for my answer? How does he even know if I'm not already busy that night?"

"Are you busy?"

I sighed," Well… no, but-"



"What's the problem then," InuTaisho chuckled," there's no harm in a little get together between our families, right? Just make the best of it between the two of you and this little rendezvous will be done before you even know it."

I sighed knowing there was no way I was going to get out of it now. The best I could do is just grin and bare it, like Tai said. I would have to keep this from Shilulu at all costs, though. With that thought I started to make idol conversation with Tai for the rest of the evening. That is until Shilulu called and demanded I come home, or else she would skin me, and make a throw rug for her floor with it…

"You what!" Shilulu screamed at five thirty Friday evening. I sighed, wishing that everything wouldn't have come down to this. In extreme stealth ninja mode, I was able to keep my little secret to myself all week, but when I realized this morning that I didn't have anything at all semi formal to wear tonight, I was reduced to asking Shilulu for help. Sadly, it was almost time for my date by the time I was able to get the courage up to ask her.

"Rin, what, in the name of the giant cookie of Ashambala, possessed you to go out on a date with the snowman from hell? That man is evil incarnate, and you agreed to go on a date with him!"

"Look, it's not a date, and I need your help so bad. And for another thing, what in the hell is the giant cookie of Ashambala?"

"Never mind that, I'm very disappointed in you Rin. I'll see what I can do for you though, 'cause I think backing out is not an option at this point. If that fucker does one thing though, one thing, I want you to get the hell out of there, and get to me, or someone else immediately. I also want your cell phone on at all times," Shilulu ranted like an over protective father. Luckily, while she was ranting, she was also leading me to the back room of the studio.



The studio did offer acting classes, though neither Shilulu nor Shippo taught them and they were only once a month, and because of that there were tons of costumes. Many of them were fantasy, or old fashioned clothes, but there was an area of up to date dresses and formal clothes. Of course, Shilulu wouldn't own a dress to save her life, and she owns very little formal men's clothes in general.

After about half an hour of shifting, and some rather creative curses featuring the cookie of Ashambala, Shilulu found five acceptable choices. One of them was what looked like a lime green bride's maid dress where the bride was feeling pretty spiteful. The second choice was something close to a black hooker dress that was very pretty, but showed off way more than I ever planned on showing. The third was a pink frothy concoction that was probably used as a princess' dress, and was too girly and formal for me. The forth was a deep blue Kimono, that had silver trimming and an obi, complete with instructions for a very elaborate hair style. Last, but not least, was a ball room dancing dress that, despite the fact it was probably a little out of style, was best suited to me. The whole dress was a cream shade, and had thin spaghetti straps at the top. I thanked the kamis that there were no ruffles, and the skirt was loose, but somewhat form-fitting. That means that I wouldn't have to worry about embarrassing myself, by knocking everything over with my skirt. I would probably find some other way to embarrass myself though…

"Alright, so you shot down three of the five choices, so now we have to make the goddamn decision between these two dresses," Shilulu spat. I sighed knowing she usually was a lot more lax with her cursing.

"Shi-Chan," I whispered, and sat down next to her on the prop trunk," You know I'm not that eager to do this either. I haven't been around a man since… Anyways, you know this isn't really going to be a walk in the park for me either. This man hates my guts, and decides that we have to spend several hours together. Really, I'd much prefer to be here, and to take off my leg brace and relax."



She gave me a suspicious look," Why would you want to take off your leg brace if you're not sleeping? Is it acting up again, and you're not telling me? Rin, you know you have to go to the doctor if it does anything a regular leg doesn't do!"

"You mean like, I don't know, move," I whispered," The thing hasn't worked right since it got butchered Shi, and you know that. Let's just get me in the white frock so I can get this over with." She obviously felt guilty for bringing up my leg, knowing how sore of a spot it was with me. I would get the damn thing amputated, but that would almost cost more than if I just got the surgery to restore it, and neither of those were an option for me right now.

Getting into the dress was a slow, painful process. The leg brace decided that the opening was too small of a hole, so I had to get Shi in there to help me get through with out ripping it to shreds.

Once we finally got me into the damn thing, we encountered another problem that made Shilulu laugh so hard it brought tears to her eyes and she fell to the floor. I kicked her because she really deserved it for being a hypocrite. It turns out that I was no where near busty enough to fill out the top, so the front hung down, despite the straps, and showed off what little cleavage I had from top to bottom. According to a laughing Shilulu, I had the equivalent chest size of a budding 13 year old. My only retort was that she was so flat she could go into a men's sauna, and never be figured out, and probably complimented on the nice six packs she had. It didn't shut her up, but it made me feel a little better.

Five minutes, and a two times larger, bubble wrap induced, chest size, latter, I was finally ready to finish my hair, and get a cab down to the Youkai's Requiem. Shilulu looked up from my hair which was almost complete," Rin, be careful in that dress, I don't want you to fall on your face and have people think gun shots are going off." I couldn't help but snort at the comment because it was pretty funny.



"Well, I have to say, this is one of the most uncomfortable things I have ever done. Remind me next time that anywhere I go formally, I will wear men's clothes, because I don't care if I embarrass who I go with, at least I can be comfortable," I huffed. The bubble wrap rubbed my nipples in a very wrong way, and I swore I would get a rash by tomorrow. If I moved around enough, you could hear the plastic shifting with my body.

I sighed knowing that this was as good as it was going to get. Looking in the mirror for a last minute inspection, I found myself blushing prettily, like I was going on my first date with my high school crush or something. There was a desperate moment of trying to wipe it off my face, for fear of ridicule, when I realized that there was no way to get rid of it because I was so nervous. Forgoing a lecture from Shilulu, I went outside, and hailed a cab to take me to hell.

Looking up at the Youkai's Requiem, I realized it looked ten times as powerful and intimidating in complete darkness. Maybe if I turned around right now and claimed that I was sick, I could get away from this mess. I bet right now, if I really wanted to, I could barf. Though, the queasiness of my stomach might have had something to do with that ability. In the back of my mind, I realized there was no way to get away, because, one way or another, Sesshomaru Takahashi was going to drag me to this dinner eventually.

Walking through the doors, I saw at least five couples waiting in line for a table. After getting through the line just to get to the podium, I realized it was the same waitress from my last visit. The look she gave me was complete and udder shock. Inside, I was highly insulted that she doubted I could clean up well, but I just gritted my teeth and got what I needed to done.



"I have a reservation for this evening. My… acquaintance should already be here," I gritted out, though it pained me to be so polite.

Shocking her out of her stupor, she was able to stutter out," Name?"

I knew this was going to be oodles of fun," Takahashi, Sesshomaru." Her eyes nearly fell out of her sockets, but she scanned her seating chart either way. If I thought she couldn't be anymore shocked tonight, I was wrong. All the color drained from her face when she realized that she was being terribly rude to her boss' guest, that the woman in front of her wasn't some crazy lunatic, and that I actually had a reservation for a table with her boss.

Somehow, she was able to step down from the desk and squeak out," Right this way. Mr. Takahashi will be very pleased to see you."

Walking through the restaurant, I realized that this place was perpetually packed. Every single table I looked at had people sitting, enjoying their meals, and talking amongst themselves. Apparently, the restaurant ran fine with or without Sesshomaru in the kitchen.



When I finally reached the table with the waitress I was stunned into shock. Sesshomaru looked even more intimidating when he was in dress clothes. He had on simple black dress slacks, a deep maroon long sleeved dress shirt, a black jacket, and his trademark scowl, that made me all the less enthusiastic about our rendezvous. As soon as I was seated, the waitress left me to my demise.

He looked me up and down, like looking for the best place to strike his prey, and I felt like I had come to the restaurant naked. It was more than a little intimidating, and a little voice in the back of my mind was screaming for me to get out of this situation before something awful happened.

I shoved that voice back and decided to start the torture," Good evening, Takahashi-san. Thank you for inviting me to dinner, it was too kind of you, and I should be the one doing this to thank you."

"Hnn…," was his intellectual reply, as he glanced down at the menu, for lack of better things. How rude! I just thanked him, and he can't even rustle up enough energy to say, at the very least, You're Welcome! What was with this prick I had to deal with?

The waitress returned a moment latter for our drink orders. Before I could even respond, he dictated like a drill sergeant," I would like one bottle of our best imported red wine, preferably the 1993, if at all possible. Also, I would like some unagi rolls and fugu. "



As the waitress nodded, and scurried off, I exploded," Excuse me! Would you let me put a say in next time! For all you know, I could be allergic to red wine and seafood, or not be able to drink liquor at all."

He raised an eyebrow," Can you drink alcohol? Next time you should speak up if you have something to say. It's not my fault at all."

"I can, but I really don't like to. Drinking with people I don't know very well makes me nervous," I stuttered. Realizing what I said, I nearly banged my head on the table. Admitting something like that might have inspired him to try it out. I would probably just have to watch very carefully how much I drank, and how it tasted. I may trust Sesshomaru's family, but that sure as hell didn't mean I trusted him.

We looked over the menu in silence, not knowing what to say to each other now that we had stopped arguing. I decided I would just get some Tonkatsu and call it a night. I didn't feel very adventurous tonight, and trying something that wasn't traditionally from Japan was a little more risky than I felt like. I also knew that this was probably the last time I would ever eat in such a high class, and expensive, restaurant as this, so I should try one of my favorite dishes while I was here.

Once I put my menu down, I felt like the most awkward person in the world. What was there to say, now that we had exhausted arguments and embarrassing details? This was going to be such a nightmare, because I knew he wasn't going to say anything, so that meant I would have to initiate the conversation.

"So, what got you so interested in cooking? I doubt that you are the type of person who just follows in the footsteps of family business," I said as I swished my red wine around the crystal glass. Utter silence followed.

Then, surprisingly, he spoke," I was taught by my father at a very young age. Shortly after all my lessons with him progressed, my mother got a divorce from him. After that, all I did was cook." He seemed very displeased with himself for saying that. I guess whatever wound I caused him, ran deeper than most.

I hesitantly whispered," Shouldn't you have gone with your mother? Most courts usually grant custody to the female."

He glared at me," Of course my father got custody of me. He is InuTaisho Takahashi, owner of the Youkai's Requiem, one of the most well known restaurants in Japan for its culinary expertise. There would be no question of who would take me on, the famous chef with lots of money and need for and heir, or the high bred demoness who he married as a business match? Though my mother is formidable beyond what a human like you could comprehend, she doesn't have the same money my father inherited, then quadrupled." I understood now. His parents divorced, and he cooked out of misery. It just became a norm for him to show his emotions through the art of his food.



Silence reined again as we stopped talking. It was then that the waitress returned a second time, bringing the fugu and unagi. Suddenly, I remembered something I had forgotten in our earlier argument. As I scooted away, the waitress placed the platters on the table and took both our orders. He decided to go for Fukagawa-meshi.

"You ordered fugu? Are you nuts? That stuff is poisonous," I squeaked. I'd heard tales on how people had died of fugu poisoning from ill prepared plates.

He smirked and picked up a piece," I prepared this myself only this afternoon. Fugu is a delicacy when prepared correctly, and is meant as a warning to others that you are fearless. You can not just buy and serve fugu, you know. You must learn under a licensed fugu chef, like my father, for two years, and then go through several examinations. Frequent inspections for quality and safety are done by the health department, and it is thoroughly monitored for who is buying. I was tested by Muraki Keizo-san, one of the big name Public Health Bureau workers, himself. I didn't expect you to try it anyway."

He continued smirking as he ate the thin strip. It infuriated me he would be so cocky. With careless abandon, I picked up a piece, and without looking, chewed and swallowed. It was actually fantastic. I had expected something akin to the lutefisk _(An: pronounced lud-a-fisck. A Scandinavian dish of dried cod, preserved in potash lye, then skinned, boned, and boiled. It's the nastiest thing on earth!)_ that Shilulu had once forced me to eat unknowingly, but the flavor was some of the finest that I had ever tasted.



However, I was much more satisfied with the look on Sesshomaru's face when I ate it. He resembled a fish out of water with his eyes wide, and mouth slightly open. The look was only there for a second before he composed himself, but I still saw it, and I was still satisfied. I helped myself to another piece of the fugu, and then sampled the unagi rolls. Unagi certainly wasn't my favorite for sushi, but with a little wasabi and soy sauce, I was one happy camper. Surprisingly, now that we were both eating, it wasn't as awkward, and I had a slight hope that I would be able to get out of this get together relatively unscarred.

"Why do you work as a pastry chef?"

The question was so sudden; I nearly fell out of my chair. Did Sesshomaru, just actually ask me a personal question? I was tempted to ask him if he was delusional or sick, or look around to see if hells minions were swooping around outside with the coming of the apocalypse. Despite all odds, my mouth disobeyed me, and I answered.

"It's the only memory of my parents that I have left. My mother was the one who taught me how to cook, and I have tons of fond memories of getting dirty in the kitchen with her. She would be happy to see that I carried on doing what she loved best," I said quietly. I didn't look up from my unagi because I didn't want to see whatever his reaction was. It didn't matter anyways.

We were in silence the rest of our time, until Sesshomaru started doing some pretty scary growling. All the people around us were looking at us funnily, and I was blushing an amazing shade of red. I looked 

around franticly to see what he was growling at, and was more than a little surprised to see him looking murderously at InuTaisho, who was brining out our order.

"Good evening both of you. How's everything been so far on such a lovely night? No arguments or homicidal missions I hope," he chuckled, and set Sesshomaru's plate down. As soon as he did so, Sesshomaru's hand shot up and grabbed Tai's neck, his claws dangerously close to a vein. No one seemed to notice the commotion.

Sess hissed, "How dare you lie to me father. I hope you have some good explanations for this slight to my honor and your own."

I was amazed to see the humor and warmth drain from Tai's eyes and face for the first time. He looked as cold as Sesshomaru regularly, and I suddenly knew where he had gotten that trade mark stone statue look from. Tai's hand discretely snatched Sess' hand and twisted it back unnaturally, while cuffing Sess across the head.

"You know better than to talk to your alpha that way, you ungrateful whelp," Tai's eyes then turned to me, and the warmth returned, yet I couldn't shake my own fears, and silent shivers, "I hope you both enjoy your dinners. I cooked each especially the way I hoped you would like them. You made a fantastic choice, Rin. The Tonkatsu is one of the best dishes we serve here. And, by the way Sesshomaru, your mother canceled on me and is spending the night at the Higurashi shrine. Enjoy your dinner." He left, and I 

shivered again in his wake. I understood now why some people feared that man. The look on his face and lack of compassion was a startling opposite to the cheery, over zealous, family man that I had come to know as something of a father figure. He was not a person to toy around with.

Dinner became another silent affair, and I was led to believe that Sesshomaru was too busy contemplating being reprimanded by his father to notice I was still here. Once I was done, I needed to go to the bathroom, because I could feel the dress slipping slightly, and I was terrified that the bubble wrap wasn't going to hold, as well as the need to go causing me to fidget and making a lot of noise with the wrap. Just as I was about to slip away, InuTaisho showed up all smiles, and came to ask us how dinner was. Of all the awful times…

"So how was the dinner? I wasn't sure if this was your first time her, Rin, so the staff made extra lengths to make sure everything was perfect," he smiled. I returned the gesture, but when I fidgeted again, I was terrified to feel some of the bubbles snag on the zipper. If I made any move, I was sure the bubbles would pop, and with two demons right next to me with more than adequate hearing, that would be the most embarrassing moment of my life.

I would have to make a run for it, "Excuse me gentlemen, but I really need to visit the lady's room, and…" It was too late. The bubbles snagged, and then a loud sickening series of pops was heard. I could feel the dress trying to fall, so I grabbed my purse and ran. What I didn't notice was the sheet that had had all the bubbles on it fell to the floor, and right at InuTaisho's feet. I did notice, however, when I came back that 

Tai was laughing hysterically, and saying something about not all women being graced with curves before leaving.

My face was flaming, and I decided, enough was enough for the night. I had already had my share of fun, adventure, and embarrassment for the night.

"Thank you for the excellent meal tonight, Sesshomaru. I'm afraid it's getting late though, and I really need to get home. I'll just pay for my portion and-" He cut me off before I could finish.

"There is no need for you to pay, we own this restaurant, and it won't hurt for us to have one meal. Consider this a thank you for the breakfast's."

I felt bad, but then again, this was the jerk who had constantly insulted me for being human. Maybe just this once, I would indulge, and not be a nice person. Don't nice guys finish last anyway?

I smiled, "Thank you then. I was glad I came this evening. I had a wonderful time, and I hope to see you and your family again soon. I'll walk myself out."



Before I could get two steps, he grabbed my arm and sighed, "Next Saturday morning at seven, I am going to be preparing for a large and important group of dignitaries dinners. I am understaffed that evening, and I don't have anyone to do the desert. Could I… ask your assistance in the matter of having it arranged that morning? It will only be you in the kitchen, and I will be in my office."

For what felt like the thousandth time that night, I was stunned. I answered before I even really thought, "Sure. I'll be here around six forty five. Good evening Sesshomaru and thank you." I left before I could change my mind. I decided to just go home, take a bath, and get to bed. The thought of going back to Shilulu's just seemed to weigh my mind down, and depress me.

Later that night when I was lying in bed, I wondered if Sesshomaru was lonely. Knowing now, what I didn't know then made me respect him a bit more. Maybe he really wasn't a bad guy, just like I had thought at first. He was still one of the biggest assholes on the face of the planet, but one that may just be tolerable, and worth being around. With that I fell asleep, unaware of the call coming to change my life.

_Just as a note here are some explinations on the dinners they ordered:_

_Tonkatsu_

_Tonkatsu is a deep-fried pork cutlet rolled in breadcrumbs_

_Fukagawa-meshi (Tokyo)_

_Fukagawa-meshi is a popular dish in downtown Tokyo. Shelled clams and leeks are cooked in miso and then served on a bowl of rice together with the soup. In fukagawa-meshi cooked with fat clams in season (spring), the flavor of the stock from the clams mixed with miso creates a distinct, delicious taste. It is hard to imagine now, but the Fukagawa area once flourished as a fishing town and clams were abundant at the mouth of the Sumida-gawa River. Some restaurants in this area still offer fukagawa-meshi, so if you notice a sign for one while walking around downtown, share the experience enjoyed by those in the Edo Period (1603-1867)._

_Fugu- Puffer fish_

_These all were from a website called JNTO website. The Japan National Tourist Organization. You really should check it out sometime if you want true facts on things that happen in Japan. I should have the link on my homepage if you want to visit it. Check it out!_

_Also, Muraki Keizo is a real person. He is head of the department I mentioned, and does test students for fugu chef licences. All the stuff I said was reaserched and is acurate and up to date. I really want to try fugu..._


	7. Bars as Frail as Pocky

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 7-

Bars as Frail as Pocky

_An: I'm going to attempt my fastest update ever. I really do need to get a speed up on things anyway. Last chapter was very interesting to write, though I felt it was a bit rushed at the end. Not much has been said about Sess at this point, and it is questionable how he is going to react. I know how I want this story to end, but I'm not sure about how it's going. Oh, by the way, if you have the ability, I would highly sujest going onto youtube, and looking up Yatta Yatta. If you see the video, then you will truly understand why it is so horrifying to have it playing!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha! All rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi. Hershey's owns its own stuff that doesn't belong to me and I don't own any songs that are mentioned. I don't own Yatta. I don't own anything. I don't even own my stuff. That all belongs to the government…_

* * *

Flying. The word that best described it was flying. My feet moved at what seemed to be an inhuman rate. I twirled and twisted, I jumped and soared, I lifted my feet above my head, seeing the lovely teal shaded ribbons that wound up my legs. The feeling was just too wonderful. My short gown twirled around with me, clinging to my body, yet moving with a grace and mind of its own, making the dance all the more beautiful. The music was dark and yet had a note of hope and passion hidden behind its words.

As I leaped again, I was caught in strong arms that twirled me around with them. The dark black satin rubbed against my bare arms, and we continued the dance, now a duet. Around us were brilliant teal blue butterflies that seemed to glow in radiance. Just as we hit the crescendo of the song, an annoying ring met my ears. It completely ruined the dance. I tried to look around for the sound, but the arms held me insistently, and turned me back to the dance. The ringing died out after a while, but then it started again. Finally incensed, when I was lightly spun out of my partners arms, I shot out of their hold.

I blinked and took a deep breath. Looking around, I realized I was in my own room, and was hearing the sound of my cell phone in my dream. Right now, I couldn't be more pissed off that my lovely dream had been interrupted, especially, after such a long night fighting through dinner with Sesshomaru Takahashi. Looking around for my cell phone, I scrambled out of bed. My mind was still hazy from sleep, so I didn't notice that my phone was ringing, which signaled a blocked number call.

"Moshi, Moshi," I yawned into the phone, assuming it was either Shilulu or Kohaku.

"Well, well, well, isn't your voice a sound for sore ears. I haven't heard it in, what, three years? I was so hoping you would have come to see me while I was away. You haven't changed a bit from what I can tell."

I wanted to drop the phone and stomp on it, but my hands seemed to be frozen, just like the rest of me, "Akitoki…"

He chuckled, "Well, babe, I'm glad you remember me. We have so much to catch up on. Did you know that I just got released this morning? I wanted to start off where we left. You know, I really do need a-"

"SHUT UP, JUST SHUT UP! I'M NOT DOING ANYTHING FOR YOU, YOU SICK TWISTED BASTARD. LEAVE ME ALONE," I was finally able to scream. His voice sounded so close, as if he were right next to me. I couldn't handle the pressure.

"Maybe you have changed, Rin. That disappoints me. I was hoping that you would be willing to start back up again. I just want to tell you that you have more to worry about than just yourself. I don't think you would want to lose that lovely little shop of yours, do you? That is where all your money is now isn't it? Let's just keep that straight between us. I'll talk to you later sweetheart, all right? See ya darling," he hung up.

Nothing felt better than flinging the cell phone across the room, hearing it smash, and collapsing to the floor. My leg throbbed in awful pain, but I ignored it in favor of thinking about the pain in my heart. Akitoki was free, and now he was going to cling to me like a leech. I guess I was just lucky that he didn't know about the Takahashi pack, Shilulu, or anyone else involved with me. Then again, he probably wouldn't threaten anyone else's life besides my own. In the back of my mind I realized that he didn't want to kill me, just to finish his "project", which was almost a fate worse than death. Going through everything in my head just made me sick to my stomach and dizzy. I let myself fall the rest of the way to the floor, and promptly passed out.

* * *

"RIN, OH MY GOD, RIN! Wake up! Don't you dare do this to me again, you selfish bitch," I heard a voice scream. Blearily I looked up into Shilulu's face. She relaxed so fully that it looked like she was about to pass out herself. Once I had stared at her a few minutes that childish irrational side of me quickly reared its head, and made me break down into hysterical fits of crying. She gathered me up, and took me to my room. Laying us both down, she covered us with the sheets, and started to sing softly in my ear, holding me tight. _(An: I know this sounds totally lesbian… Who is the romance between here, Rin/Sess or Rin/Shi? You all know the answer…)_

It seemed like hours before I was a bit more composed. At some point, I vaguely remember being so hysterical that I tried to hit and runaway from Shilulu. She understood though, that I had no control at that point, and that I didn't recognize her. She had let me take out my anger, but kept firmly in place the whole time.

Now she looked at me, "Rin, what happened? I tried calling you because you were late, and the line said that there was no such number. When I got here, you were just out on the ground."

"I had… an awful nightmare. When I finally got out of it, I stumbled out of bed and passed out before I could do anything," I chocked out. A plain lie, but I couldn't tell her the truth. Akitoki was going to become an unstoppable force no matter what we did. Letting Shilulu know would just put her in harms way. She would be safe this way.

Her eyebrow rose, "If that is the case then why was your cell phone in pieces, and a dent in the wall? Don't lie to me Rin."

I panicked, "When I got out of bed, I tried calling you. I started panicking before that though, and I just threw it when I didn't remember what was going on. I passed out after that. I had no idea that I had broken it."

She gave me a skeptical look, but I continued on, "The dream was about when you had just rescued me. That, and before that… I don't want to lock it in anymore, I need relief!" I knew this was all a lie; I didn't want to tell her that I knew this was all a lie; I didn't want to tell her that Akitoki was back. So, to distract her, I had to lie and tell her the truth of the past. If suffering now saved Shilulu and my friends, then so be it.

So I told her. Every single little detail of my capture and torture was revealed. Reliving the moments of my life that were forever embedded in my memory. Shilulu's face contorted in horror at all the things I said. The monstrosities of Akitoki's slow dismemberment of my soul: piece by piece. Despite the fact that it horrified me and reawakened horrible nightmares, I showed her the pictures that Akitoki had taken, so that he could savor the memories of the feeling of my flesh in years to come. I had never brought myself to show anyone, even the police these pictures before. They wouldn't have been good enough evidence anyway, since they seemed harmless, unless explained. Shilulu took them from me, saying that I needed to let go of them, and that I should never see them again. In the back of my mind, I agreed, and let the rest of the afternoon slip away silently as Shilulu held me in tears. _(An: Please don't kill me for not telling you… it's important that you don't know what happened…)_

After my reliving of my life's horror, I was a wreck for the next two days. I know I probably lost hundreds of dollars in revenue when I didn't open the shop, but my other side refused to settle back into the back of my mind. I held Shilulu for the entire time, and made her life harder by interfering in her life even more. She couldn't do anything with a leech like me feeding off of her. In some of my more sane moments, I was able to tell her to leave and go on with her life. She didn't need me to be keeping her from her own dreams.

Reinforcing the fact that she is a great friend, she told me that she had already achieved her dreams and it was her turn now to help me get to mine. Some people need more of a boost than she did. It just made me want to be more like her, independent, and self motivated, not crazy, crippled, and selfish. In the back of my mind I realized that I could never be a mother if I can't support myself. It was a more depressing thought than knowing how I drag Shilulu down.

After hours of comatose sleep and many bubble baths and hugs, I was semi-fit to at least work in the back room of the Chocolate Pallet. Kohaku had apparently been informed of the tragedy, or at least me reliving it because when we went back of Tuesday, he looked at me with such saddened eyes. It was a pleasant surprise though, to hear that he and his friend, Souta, had held down the fort and was able to open on Monday without me. I couldn't thank him enough, even with all the hugs, kisses, and free cakes, for what he has already done for me.

Throughout the week, I made some progress. I stopped just working in the backroom; I socialized with Jenjiro and any of the other customers around. Shilulu wasn't quite convinced that I had made a full recovery yet, though. My Mp3 player acted as a timer, and at three o'clock I would take a break, as Shilulu commanded. She also chose the song that would play when it was time. It was some obnoxious group singing Yatta, which was the equivalent of America's _YMCA_. Any grown adult that heard it would wonder what the heck I was doing listening to something so juvenile. One of the many reasons I absolutely hate Shilulu.

Now it's Saturday and I have to open the shop without Shilulu because she is on her period and I'd rather have her sleep in than kill the customers. I unlocked the door and stepped inside. The clock read 6:45. I sighed and started to do my monotonous routine when something started clicking in the back of my head. Slowly, I let the rusty gears turn to figure out what the hell I was forgetting or trying to remember. I glanced about, and then it clicked. Somehow, I had totally spaced that I was supposed to be at the Youkai's Requiem literally right now!

"OH GREAT FUCKING COOKIE OF ASHAMBALA, I'M SO LATE! Oh my kami, that man is going to kill me," I screeched, unknowingly waking up half the northern hemisphere, and sounding a bit too much like Shilulu for my tastes.

With the hastiest note ever scribbled to Shilulu, I doubt she would be able to read it when she came in, I scrambled out the door and desperately hailed a taxi. In the back of my mind, I knew that I had signed my death warrant with Satan for being late. Kami forbid that anyone EVER hold up the great prick Sesshomaru-sama's schedule even the slightest bit.

* * *

When I walked through the doors of the Requiem, I could feel the gloom and malice so thick in the air that I thought I might choke. I turned around briefly to see if he might be standing behind me with a butcher's knife to maul me brutally and stuff me in one of the evening's specials. It was almost disappointing, and a little more frightening, that he wasn't.

Slowly, so as not to set off any booby traps he may have set, I made my way to the kitchens. There was soft classical music playing, and I wondered if maybe Sesshomaru had told me wrong, and that I would be working with his father instead. But that wouldn't explain the almost tangible anger…

As soon as I walked into the kitchen, a knife was pushed to my throat, as expected. For some reason, though, I wasn't afraid like I would be in any other situation. After all that had happened in my life, I thought at the very least, I would scream in terror at being attacked.

"When you agree to do something, you should do so efficiently, correctly, and on time. I have no need for people who slack off and can't bring themselves to be, at the very least, on time," he growled menacingly. Just as I had seen him on many occasions before, Sesshomaru was decked out in all his chefly gear, except with out the hat, but he made up for it with his knife, I guess. Said knife was still dangerously close to an artery, despite the fact that he had said what he needed to. Maybe he really did intend to kill me…

"Look Sesshomaru," I sighed, "I know I'm about ten minutes late, but I still want to help. I'm ready to do whatever you have planned for me. Please, let me help?" I did my best puppy dog pout I could muster, and batted my eyelashes at him. As I expected, he didn't even blink. Then, the knife slowly lowered, and he turned back to the cutting board laden with vegetables, and set back to work.

He barked, "Get over to the third table and get to work on the green tea shu cream puffs and sherbet. The recipes are posted to the cabinets, and all the ingredients are under the sink. You will be making enough for 20 people, with two cream puffs and a cup of sherbet per person. This is a basic pastry chef capability, so I hope, as you are running a business of your own claiming such ability, you don't have any questions. Get started." I glared at the back of his head for not only being a fucking Nazi about everything, that I was doing out of the kindness of my heart, but also because he didn't think I had a basic pastry chef's skills! Honestly, this man must think he is a Kami, or something.

Luckily, though the things he had chosen were time consuming, I was well rehearsed in making green tea shu cream puffs. The sherbet was a little new to me, but I can survive. I know other types of sherbet, so that should come in handy. Maybe, just to rub it in his face, I should bring some of the cream puffs I sell, and show him how good I really am!

Starting with the longest recipe, I worked on the cream puffs. Of course, the recipe was really easy, with just basic ingredients like flour, water, sugar, butter, and eggs. The dough took the longest only because you had to bake it. It was just your typical pastry dough that you mixed the water, sugar, and butter together first, then added flour, and putt in eggs. The only thing tricky about it, that I didn't follow the recipe on, was getting the consistency right.

Even if you follow the recipe down to the dotted I, it usually won't be perfect for pastry dough. When making creampuffs, the dough has to be light and not have to much loose powder in it. If it becomes too powdery then it falls apart, and won't hold the filling. It took me forever to figure that out, and my dough was always to crumbly. Despite what most people say, there is a science to baking that requires years of practice. I'm nothing more than a novice in the business really.

I had just put the dough balls into the oven, when I decided enough was enough with his classical, depressing music. Don't get me wrong, I have tons of respect for classical composers of the ages, and I love the music, but I think its time that Sesshomaru is just a little happier. Or, at least, the atmosphere around him is happy, even if he wants to kill. Then we would have a very nice little illusion.

Digging through my purse, I called over my shoulder, "Where is your stereo system?" Once I had retrieved my Mp3 player, in all it's shiny white glory, I spun round to demand his answer, and was cut off by and incredible sight.

There, before me, stood a creature of legend and mystery. Sesshomaru was hunched over a plate, a look of intense concentration stretched across his face as he added garnishes of some herb. He wasn't scowling like usual, he was just busy. It was almost like he was, happy… Did cooking really bring that much relief to this man? It was hard to snap myself out of the trance of looking at his contented face. I felt the same way when I was cooking, so maybe he and I did have more in common.

"Excuse me, Sesshomaru-san, where is your stereo system," I tried again, a little more polite. He grunted, and pointed towards his office, without looking up from the plates.

I walked into his office, and was stunned to see that it was something of a disaster zone. There were papers everywhere, clothes that looked like they were in desperate need of washing, and blankets and pillows strewn across a tiny couch. Taking hesitant steps, I walked to his desk, and saw his schedule left open across its surface, and his Mp3 player plugged into the computer. I bit my lip, trying to figure out if I wanted to snoop into his life, and decided it wouldn't hurt to take a peak. His life must be something of a circus right now if his office looked like this… unless he was naturally a pig.

Starting at the first two pages it was left open too, I saw that he had major bookings for at least five companies every day this week. If he had to prepare all of this food in advance… that would mean he would almost have to be here 24/7. Looking at the office, he probably was. I wouldn't be able to imagine having to work like that for days straight. Everybody needs a break sometimes, even obsessive, homicidal, demons like him. Flipping around, I found that he had weeks like this at least twice a month. Sheesh was it just me, or was this guy a glutton for punishment?

I heard shuffling coming from outside the door, and quickly plugged in my Mp3 player. Scrolling around, I decided I felt in the mood for some light songs from the Miazaki movies, and put on Kaze Ni Naru. Listening, I heard Sesshomaru cursing as his music stopped. Whops. I guess that he didn't realize I was taking his music off. No point in stopping now, I guess. I will just accept the consequences. Peaking my head out the door, I saw him glaring at the speakers as they played my music.

I went back to my station and started blending the filling for the cream puffs, "My music isn't that bad. I could be playing some of my annoying J-pop so quit whining."

"I don't appreciate you fiddling with my stuff. It will have human stench all over it now," he growled, as he started storing the plates for later.

I snorted, and looked back to my station. The timer beeped on the oven, and I pulled out the dough balls. They were too hot to fill right now, so I just looked around vaguely. My eyes landed on Sesshomaru, and I got an evil idea in my head. I watched him intently and didn't blink at all, and when he finally felt my eyes on him, he turned abruptly. As soon as he turned, I pretended to be to be working on the filling. He glared, and turned back to his work. An evil smirk crossed my face, and I stared at him again. This time, he noticed faster, and was going to confront me again, when I turned again. I could almost see the steam coming off him, as he went back to chopping fish. This went back and forth for a while until he caught me.

"Are you really going to be this juvenile the whole time? Because, if so, I will kick you out of my kitchen promptly before I have to deal with further distractions," he growled.

I turned around and blew a raspberry at him, "Yep. We all know that underneath it all you're just a big teddy bear. With claws…" The dough was finally cooled, and I filled the pastry sack with the filling. Squeezing the goo in was somewhat nasty, because not only did it feel wrong, it looked like I was handling snot. Green tea filling, while tasty, was not known for its attractiveness.

We continued our bantering throughout the rest of the morning, all the way up to eleven. I finished my portion relatively quickly, so I got a little treat. After putting the sherbet into the freezer too chill, he looked at me.

"You finished?"

I smiled, "Just because I like to goof off, doesn't mean that I don't do my work. I agreed to help you, so I did my portion. Need me to do something else?"

He looked a little disgruntled, "The only thing I have left to do is the hours devours portion."

I felt a little bummed, "I'd like to help. There's got to be something I can do. Cooking may not be my strong point like baking, but they're not that different." Usually, I wouldn't want to help him, but after seeing his schedule, I know he must be stressed and need some assistance. Whether or not he asks for it is another matter entirely.

"Come here then. I will teach you how to do some sushi rolls. Never in my right mind would I have a human, such as you, touch the fugu. The last thing I need right now is being sued for your carelessness," he sighed. I brightened, despite the insults at my heritage. In the end, I guess I was just getting used to them.

* * *

For the next hour, he taught me how to slice various seafood and seaweed for sushi. I wasn't completely hopeless, like I was expecting, but he also did a lot of it himself. When he was guiding my hand with the knife after a near incident of cutting a finger off, I had to hide my blush. For someone who hated humans, he certainly stood awfully close (i.e. right behind me with me pressed against the counter and my butt pressed up against his crotch) just for knife lessons. He put his hand over mine, and started slicing much more elegantly than I had before, quietly lecturing me on the proper method. I was sort of caught up in not trying to think bad thoughts of my arch nemesis to notice.

As soon as the last of the food was stored ten minutes latter, he did the most surprising thing ever.

"Rin, go sit at the table, I'll bring the sushi and fugu," he ordered, whipping out a plate from nowhere that held a small portion of the food we just made.

"Wh-what? Why," I stuttered. He pushed me towards the table, and gestured for me to sit down. Plates had already been set, and he served us before answering.

He stared at me dully, "We are going to have lunch, and sample tonight's course. I want to make sure it's perfect before we serve it."

"But isn't that a waste of the food? Someone won't get their portion," I pointed out.

He shook his head, "I had us make extra for a reason. Now, sit down, shut up and eat." He brandished chopsticks at me, and we both ate in a comfortable silence.

Going through lunch was probably one of the most enjoyable experiences I have ever had with him. Everything we made was superb, and I was extremely jealous of the people who got to eat here tonight. He had prepared an elaborate set of classic dishes, with some interesting twists. What surprised me the most was that he had made us plates that were artistic, just like the other ones, instead of just throwing it together like he could have done. There was no reason for him to take time on us. We didn't talk at all during the time, but I think we developed an understanding. If I stopped being somewhat immature and hesitant, he would start being more polite. Or, at least, that's what I hoped we both thought…

I glanced down at my watch, and my eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Oh my God! Shilulu is going to kill me! I'm so late, this is not good. Thank you so much for the lunch Sesshomaru. I appreciated it so much, and it was delicious, but I need to go, so I'll see you around," All the while, I had rushed in, grabbed my bag, and bowed to him, before rushing outside, and hailing a taxi. I don't think he knew what hit him.

* * *

My luck is terrible. As soon as I had got back to the Chocolate Pallet, Shilulu had chewed me out for all she was worth. No matter how many times I told her that I had lost track of time, she just kept lecturing me on time management. I swear that girl is more like my mother than my friend. She had only let up when Kohaku had come in and said that we were scaring off customers with our shouting. Her bad mood didn't change, but she didn't bring it up anymore.

Today was important though. Shilulu and I had agreed to add Kohaku to the payroll officially. We didn't want to keep mooching off his services anymore, and he would need money for paying for the apartment once Sango moved out and stopped paying the bills. She's been so understanding of the situation lately, and hasn't complained at all when Kohaku still hasn't been searching for a paying job. Now, he would be an official employee until he went out and pursued his actual career.

Time flew in the day, and before I knew it, Shilulu was calling back to me, "Just a heads up Rin, your break starts in about ten minutes, so you should get your Mp3 player out to remind you." I nodded and went on the quest through my purse to find said device. I looked for a couple minutes before the terrifying truth hit me. Not only had I left my Mp3 player at the Requiem, but it was also plugged into the sound system set to play the most obnoxious j-pop song in history in the ice lord's kitchen. I was doomed and dishonored for the rest of my life if I didn't get there in time.

In record time, I flew out the store, screamed the situation at Kohaku, and was in a cab bound for the Youkai's Requiem. No amount of harassing could make my driver go any faster, and by the time I got out the cab, according to the driver's clock, I was too late.

Whipping through the doors, I saw all the customers staring down the kitchen hallways curiously. That was not a good sign. I ran past the waitress, calling over my shoulder, "Emergency!" It was too late though.

As soon as I flung the kitchen doors open, I was met with the most horrifying sight. The usually orderly and fast paced kitchen had halted its entire works. While Sesshomaru stood in the corner, twitching faintly, the rest of the kitchen staff was dancing around the cooking islands to the song. I think the second in command was even making Indian whooping war cry sounds.

_G R Double-E N Leaves  
G R Double-E N Leaves _

_It's so easy! Happy-go-lucky!  
We are the world! We did it!  
Hyuu! Hyuu! Hyuu! Hyuu! Osu! Osu! Osu! Osu! (Ai!)  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Daigaku gohgaku  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Shachoh shuunin  
Happa ichimai areba ii. Ikite iru kara lucky da! _

_Yatta! Yatta!_

_Tohsen kakujitsu  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Nihon daihyoh  
Yannaru kurai kenkoh da.  
Everybody say yatta! _

_Nippon kyuukyuu (demo)  
Ashita wa wonderful  
Ijiwaru saretemo futon haireba  
Guu guu guu guu! Pass pass pass pass (Ohayo--!) _

_Yatta! Yatta!  
Kuujikan suimin  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Neoki de jump  
Donna ii koto aru daroh ikite ita kara lucky da! _

_Yatta! Yatta!  
Kimi ga kawareba  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Sekai mo kawaru  
Marugoshi dakara saikoh da massugu tattara kimochi ii--! _

_O-mizu nondara umee! (Yatta!)_

_Hi ni atattara attakee! (Yatta!)  
__Koshi kara warattara omoshiree! (Yatta! Yatta!)  
Inu-katte mitara kawaii! (Yatta!) _

_Repeat _

_Surechigai-zama hohoemi kureta  
Nido to aenaku-tatte ii kimi ga ita kara lucky da! _

_Heisei fukyoh seiji fushin  
Reset sae surya saikoh da! Minna iru kara tanoshii--! _

_Yatta! Yatta!  
Daigaku kyohshitsu  
Yatta! Yatta!  
Movie star  
Happa ichimai areba ii. Minna issho da happy da! _

_Yatta! Yatta!  
Iki wo sueru  
Yatta! __Yatta!  
Iki wo hakeru  
Yannaru gurai kenkoh da! __Everybody say yatta!_

_Repeat  
Bye-Q!_

InuTaisho noticed I was standing in the door looking appalled, and straightened himself up from his position on the floor. Throughout the song, he had just been laughing his ass off, so I doubt Sess would ever forget this.

"Rin, was that your Mp3 player? If Sess is listening to this shit, I'm going to be sending him to a mental institute otherwise," he boomed. Tears of mirth were sliding down his cheeks, and I don't think I had ever seen such absolute happiness on anyone's face ever before.

I stuttered, "I'm so sorry Mr. Takahashi! I forgot it this morning!"

He laughed even harder, and embraced me in the second most bone crushing hug ever.

"Oh Rin thank you," he laughed harder, and turned to face the kitchen staff that were still dancing and chanting Yatta, "Everyone! Let's hear it for our lovely little Rin Omeiya, who brought you this entire fantastic work break!" The whole kitchen staff broke into hysterical fits of laughter, and clapped brilliantly for me. I had a full body blush going right now, and no matter how hard I tried to get away from Tai's grip, he wouldn't let go.

Sesshomaru's eyes flashed dangerously, "Rin let me tell you now, that I am going to kill you."

My eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, and he lunged. Tai was still laughing hysterically, and all he did was embrace me harder with one arm, and let Sess' attacks fall on his back. The whole kitchen continued to bawl in laughter, as our comedy act continued, Tai in excellent humor and form the entire time. My blush burned brighter, and I sighed knowing that I was stuck in this crazy pack for life now. Officially…


	8. Candied Posters

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 8-

Candied Posters

_An: its summer, which means that I am going to start trying to update faster than ever. I want this story to really start rolling now, and showing you all that action. It's pretty obvious that you guys all expect Akitoki to be put away by Sess. So far, I'm not going to tell you whether you are right or not, only that I already have a complete plot line that I have been following since I wrote it in the second chapter. So, I'm afraid you aren't going to get any changes in what I want to do. This chapter isn't going to have Sesshomaru in it, but no fear; interesting things are going to be revealed, and hints at what's to come!_

_P.S. For any of you that read and reviewed Chasing Nightmares, and put me on author alert, while I doubt that you are going to read this AN you obviously didn't read the AN for that story either! I SAID IT IS A ONESHOT!! No more. Sorry. I just have nothing else to go on, and I clearly stated it's a one-shot. Unless I have more nightmares that continue the story, which I doubt, than that's it. Sorry for all of you who didn't read that story, read this, and don't give a fuck. On to the story…_

_Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha that belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. I don't own Hershey either. Nor do I own any song I mention because I can't write my own. I hardly own a dime, so don't sue me…_

* * *

I think the only thing that is more annoying than opening a business of your own for the first time, is having that, stacked with a stalker boyfriend back from jail, a wedding coming up for a good friend, having your mangled leg acting up, dealing with an ice lord who wants to chop you up, and a homicidal friend after said ice lord's nuts. No one ever said life was easy, but they certainly never mentioned it being such a huge pain in the ass either.

After the incident with the ice lord's kitchen, I had started working my butt off at the Chocolate Pallet. It wasn't so much trying to ignore what happened there, as trying to ignore my life in general. It was always a strain to do the bills at the Pallet, no matter how much or little we made, and life just seemed to be full of stresses right now.

One incident with Akitoki, and Shilulu became as confused as hell because I stopped having mental breakdowns. It was odd, but after the first one after talking to him, I haven't had another since. My best guess would be shock treatment.

That was my other main stress factor. Akitoki continued to call me on my new cell phone. It was helpful that I didn't have breakdowns every time he called, but it still ate me up inside, and made me fear for everyone in my life right now. It was like clockwork now, three weeks after the first incident. I would wake up at seven, and my cell would come on with an anonymous call, and this happened every other day. If I ignored it, then Akitoki would just keep calling until Shilulu showed up, and then I had to explain why it was ringing, and I knew she wouldn't believe me. He always called from a different number, so I couldn't block him either.

Most of the conversations always turned out the same. He would act like everything was completely normal, ignore any questions or pleas asked of him, tell me he loved me, and hang up. Nothing he could get arrested for and enough to make me cry while I showered.

Today was just another of those days, a Friday, and the day I was finally getting together with Miroku and Sango to talk about their wedding. Since it was Friday, Shilulu decided we would have something of a little party at her studio with Kohaku, Sango, Miroku, InuYasha, and Kagome. InuTaisho and Izayoi decided to baby sit Kotaru for Kagome and InuYasha.

As I got out of bed, I heard my phone going off, and I readied myself for what was going to come.

"Good morning sunshine," drifted Akitoki's voice. To anyone else, he would have sounded like a caring boyfriend.

"Akitoki, please just leave me alone," I whispered, sitting on my couch.

He sighed, "Rin, Rin, Rin. You know you're the only girl for me right? Before you got me in trouble, I wanted to get married. We could have had a beautiful life together. I would go to work every day and you would stay home and take care of the kids. We would have beautiful children, and making them would be the best part. I remember how you feel Rin, but you're not perfect. Your skin is too tan and smooth. I like pale rough skin, with long marks I can trace my fingers over. The worst part is, I could have done it for you. Just a couple…"

I cried, "AKITOKI, STOP! You are sick. What you wanted was nothing like you said. Now tell me how you got my number."

"You think that is important," he asked innocently, "We could be the perfect couple, and you're worried about something as trivial as that? I like imagining you naked, and covered in marks that I can put. I may not be a demon, but by the end of us being together, I will make you feel like I am. No, more than that, a god, and you will be my little goddess, Rinny. See you soon sweetheart." The line died, and the dial tone sounded. I stood up shakily, and entered my shower, knowing that I wasn't going to have any luck sulking. I was stronger than this.

* * *

What does a fake laugh look and sound like? I can assure you one thing, it feels like your face is being coated in plastic and molded to someone's will. Today, that's all it feels like I've been doing. Sango, Shilulu, Kohaku, and Miroku are here enjoying themselves, and we are waiting for InuYasha and Kagome to arrive. After Akitoki's little call this morning, I haven't really felt up to doing anything, but I'm not about to put off my chance to meet Sango again anymore.

Meeting Miroku was certainly an interesting experience. Kohaku had warned me to stay away from him, due to a "cursed hand" he supposedly had. This hand had a tendency to group women's bottoms and ask them to bear his children. Shilulu was appalled that an engaged man would even think to encroach another woman, much less evoke his temperamental fiancée. My suspicions were confirmed when they introduced me to him, and he didn't lay a finger on me. Granted, he did repeatedly piss Sango off royally by touching her ass with no discretion to the other people in the room, but, in my opinion, at least he was faithful. He was a pervert, but a harmless one. The only one in trouble was Sango.

Sango was just as I remembered her from a year or so ago. You really couldn't find a nicer person. She was always respectful and quiet, but when you got her going, she could be the funniest person in the room. There was always some exciting story or another from her about something that happened at her job, a defense attorney, or maybe a joke heard in passing that stuck in her brain. It was hard to believe that she did that for a job, considering she was the life of every party. Shilulu took a shining to her, which is always an excellent sign, and Kohaku had never wavered in love for his older sister.

It was then that InuYasha and Kagome walked in.

"Don't tell me you brought the pervert tonight Sango. You know that you shouldn't do that without a leash and muzzle," InuYasha snorted. Kagome hit him on the arm, and hurried over to hug me.

She smiled, "Rin, I'm so relived to see you! I've been so worried ever since hearing about the accident. Are you fully recovered?"

I hid a grimace behind another fake smile, "You shouldn't be worried about me Kagome. I'm completely fine thanks to InuYasha, his father, and Sesshomaru. I really can't thank them all enough." I made sure to look at InuYasha when I said the last part. He was pointedly looking away.

"Doesn't matter," he grumbled, "You were being imposed upon by us, and there was no excuse for us letting you get in that situation. It was more than fair that we helped you out in your time of need."

I began to protest, but Sango cut in, "Hey, now that we're all here, do you think you guys could help us with the wedding preparations? We think we have it all down pat, but there are still a couple loose ends." In my head, I was grateful she had stopped us before we could get further into the conversation.

Four hours. That was how long it took us to wrap up all the "loose ends" of Sango's wedding. We went through dinner before we finished. Everything had to be rearranged, and even some calls made, before everything was set. There were several arguments that broke out between Sango and Miroku on the style, considering Sango wasn't particularly religious but wanted a Shinto style wedding, and Miroku was Buddhist, and wanted to lean more towards his roots. The arguments were never very serious, just fairly time consuming. They wanted to keep the wedding itself small, short, and sweet, so only close family and friends were there. The reception however, which was being held in the reception banquet area of the Tokyo plaza hotel, would have over fifty guests.

Sango grinned, "Thanks for helping me out, now there is only one thing left to do."

I groaned, "What could possibly be left?"

"Well," she stalled, looking at Miroku, InuYasha, and Kagome nervously, "Sesshomaru offered his services for the dinner. He got some of his crew to work with him, but they aren't trained in doing many desserts. We were sort of hoping we could get you to do a wedding cake and a couple smaller dishes for the dessert? It was the only real western style thing we wanted to do."

"No, I'm sorry, but no. There is no way that I am going to willingly work with that man. His attitude has to be the most stuck up ever in the history of pricks! I mean, he tried to murder me last time I saw him!" InuYasha started laughing hysterically at that. He had managed to come in and see the mess that was caused by leaving my Mp3 player in the restaurant last time. I bet InuTaisho was still laughing his ass off. There was no way Sesshomaru would ever forgive me after that stunt.

Miroku took his turn, "Please Rin? If anyone can stand him it's you. Anyway, he would only be around you for one or two sessions that you could schedule according to your times. We would be paying you too, of course."

I sighed, knowing it would be rude to continue denying them, "Alright, but I'm not going to spend any more time with him then is absolutely necessary. I have an idea for the place settings too. I could have some "goody bags" made and have little cards attached with your names and the wedding date. They could be with the place tags at the tables. It's pretty easy to have that done with all the candies we have."

Sango's eyes shone at the thought, "Oh that would be so amazing! But if you did that, I insist that you get paid for that too. We can't have you doing that much work just for us!"

I tried to dissuade them, but everyone, including Shilulu was against me.

"I'll be assisting Rin in everything by the way," Shilulu said. I was about to protest when a glare from her and Kohaku silenced me. They weren't about to let me do any work without some assistance any time soon.

I sighed, "Let's celebrate with dessert then shall we?" I was preparing the dessert when I realized I had forgotten to pick up sherbet. It wouldn't really taste right without it, so I decided I'd run down the grocery and get some. It would only take me a little while anyway.

"Hey guys," I called from across the room, "I forgot to get something at the store for the dessert. I just need to run down the block and get it. No sweat." I heard several protests coming from Kohaku and Shilulu before I bolted out the door. I knew they would never let me leave if they had a chance to stop me.

* * *

Shilulu P.O.V.

Everyone groaned as Rin left the studio. Honestly, why did she always have to make everything perfect? No one, absolutely no one, was going to complain about a lack of anything in her food. Sometimes, even being her best friend, I couldn't understand what went through that girls head.

InuYasha stood up, "Hey, Shilulu, where's the bathroom?"

"Over to the left, down the hall, and the fourth door, on your right," I muttered. Sango and Kohaku were chatting, while Miroku rested back in his chair, and Kagome was rummaging through her bag. It was about five minutes later, when I decided to go find InuYasha. I hadn't heard anything from the bathroom, and guys just didn't take that long unless they were lost. The whole group decided to follow me, out of boredom, until I saw the door to the left instead of right, to where I had given directions to.

I walked into the room to see InuYasha looking at all the posters that coated the walls. Everyone else, except Kohaku, was equally stunned. There seemed to be, what looked like, hundreds of movie-esq. posters everywhere, even the ceiling. Every single one of them was different. A new theme, new outfits, new pose, new announcement, whatever, there was something new to look at. The only thing that never changed was that they all featured just me and Rin. Sure we looked different, with the outfits, make up, maybe even a wig, but you could see, we were the same.

Kagome squeaked, "What is all this? These can't be movies."

I smiled and shook my head, "No, no, these are just some memorabilia posters we got after competitions and stuff. Rin told you we met in college, right? We did, but only because she took a free dancing lesson that I offered, and that, at the time, she had been majoring in culinary arts, with a minor in business.

I majored in dance studies, and teaching, which is why I opened a studio. The thing was, to get your diploma, they had to see that you had the ability to take a student with either little talent, or little ambition, and turn them into a world class dancer. They wanted to see you could teach. Rin was the one selected for me to teach, and I worked with her every other evening of the week.

She enjoyed it as a way to unwind so much, that I had us enter into competitions and the occasional minor in a play. It gave us the chance to hang out, and we would get to dress up, and play out different roles in a dance. As you can see, I was always the part of the man. Rin just had too much grace to be anything but feminine.

Actually, I hate these posters. Every single one of them. They were all done by Rin's ex, Akitoki. He was majoring in photography, and he did the first poster for me. I loved them so much, I employed him to do one whenever we did things like that, and introduced him to Rin. I was the bitch, who indirectly, ruined Rin's life. In my head, they were the perfect couple. Who would have guessed he was a psychotic bastard who got his jollies out of torturing people?" I leaned against the wall, heavily. There wasn't a time I didn't feel guilty for what happened. Rin was forever crippled because of me. Her bloody pride wouldn't allow me to try and mend it by paying for the surgery. In her head, the leg was her way of never forgetting the most miserable time of her life.

"Why isn't Rin dancing with you anymore? Something like that couldn't bring back bad memories. You never wanted for her to get hurt," Sango shuddered at the thought.

I sighed, "It's not for me to say to you guys, other than Rin is disabled. She will probably never dance again, which is a shame because she truly was a beautiful dancer. It wasn't her passion like baking, but she no doubt had talent. Let's get out of here. I don't want to think about depressing shit like this anymore." We all left in silence.

* * *

Rin P.O.V.

When I got back twenty minutes later, it was like stepping into a funeral. Nobody was talking, and everyone seemed downcast.

"Sheesh, did someone die? Next time wait for me to join in the fun," I tried to joke. They all looked at me with something akin to the plastic smiles I had been feeding them all day.

Miroku sighed, "We all decided to head out and turn in early Rin. We've imposed on yours and Shilulu's hospitality enough for the evening."

"Oh, alright then. I'll finish up dessert," I said somewhat dejectedly.

"By the way Rin, I made some arrangements, and I'll need you and Sesshomaru to talk with me about the food. Do you mind coming to a meeting next Wednesday night at the Youkai's Requiem?"

I nodded my head, when I realized I had nothing pressing to do that night. She smiled, and I continued with dessert. When everyone was leaving, I truly realized I had sacrificed myself in the name of Sango and Miroku's wedding. What had I gotten myself into?


	9. Cupcakes and Gumballs

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 9

Cupcakes and Gumballs

_Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha. Don't own anything really. Just look at Rumiko Takahashi..._

_An: I'm not dead... heh, yeah I finally updated after, what, a year? Yeah, I have no excuses other than I learned to loath CFFADL. But, I got over it obviously and did an overhaul on the story's plot line. I'm sorry to say its not going to be as long as I first planned, but at least now it kind of resembles something I'm willing to write. Good news all around I suppose. The next chapter should be up within a few weeks, and I'll try to make sure there aren't any more long waits for updates. I swear I will finish this, and THANK YOU so much to everyone whos encouraged me to continue! Even if this story sucks XD. _

* * *

"So this is everything right? There can't possibly be that much more anyway," Shilulu grumbled looking at the back room of the Chocolate Pallet. There were boxes upon boxes of candies and ingredients stacked high, waiting for us to make up our minds and get on with making the sachets for Sango and Miroku's wedding. The theme was a light shade of coral red, and a gold-ish yellow as the counter, so the cloth picked out was a weave of the two, cut into small circles, with an olive green ribbon to keep the edges tied together. The sachets would have the various candies we picked out inside them.

I sighed, "Stop complaining and let's get working. The king of ice might get here soon, and if we have a good head start, we can get him to leave."

"He's coming," Shilulu cursed, "Why now? I told you Rin, I can only stay for about an hour to help. I have a waltz lesson in a bit that I can't leave Shippo to do. He'd probably teach them how to do the fox trot, the little scoundrel…"

Shocked I cried, "You're leaving me with him! What if he kills me?!"

"I didn't realize you had to have him," muttered Shilulu.

I took a deep breath, "Okay, let's just go about our plans. Let's start what we need to, and when you go, you go. I'll keep going, and tell him I have more done than he can see, and he'll leave, no sweat. There, no problem!"

Shilulu gave me a disbelieving look, but nodded all the same. It's not like I was very confident either! Lately, I've been getting less and less sleep with Akitoki's constant calling, and it's been wearing me down to nothing. So far, I've just been able to use my shock on the subject to block out my other usual reactions, and by doing that, I can try to live my life as normally as possible. It's become a routine so much that I just sort of tune him out as best I can. If I tune him out completely though, he can tell, and he gets furious. He threatens me more then, and his voice gets spine chilling cold. It scares me more than anything else in the world.

Shilulu tossed a bag of powder at my head, and I only barely caught it in my daze. A quirk of the eyebrow made me realize that I was spacing and needed to get to work. The things that were going in the sachet were more spring time candies to match the weather. Anything we put in was not going to involve chocolate for obvious reasons. Tiny puppy paws had a bad habit of making their way into things they shouldn't, and I don't think Kagome and InuYasha wanted to deal with a bout of food poisoning instead of enjoying Sango and Miroku's wedding.

We got a lot done, as usual, without too many hitches. The kitchen was good at handling a lot of different things happening at one time, and Shilulu got into a mood where she got things done instead of teasing me. I had so much to do, that I also ignored the urge to have a giggle about the cookie that was still imbedded in the wall. This reminded me…

While I stirred one of the pots on the stove, I innocently questioned, "Shilulu-chan, we have time now, what the hell is the Great Cookie of Ashambala?"

She shook her head, "No way Rin-chan. I ain't telling ya' what it is. It's too much for your fragile psyche."

"Aww, come on! You curse in its name, so it has gotta' be something good. You know you want to tell me," I whined.

"Nope," she smirked, "You can't get it out of me for anything."

As quietly as possible, I reached into the hot oven with a pair of tongs. Using my leg brace as a strong hold, I moved my leg between hers, and pinned her against the counter. For someone who danced constantly and was a demon, she was pretty weak. The look on her face was priceless when she saw what I was holding.

"Now you wouldn't want to piss off your best friend now would you? Tell me what it is, or else you get to meet with the cookie in the wall's younger sister who is VERY hot," I sneered. I had saved some of the awful sugar cookies from months ago, and kept them alive, and very black, in the bottom of the oven. Luckily they were so solid; they hadn't broken down into charcoal by some miracle.

"All right," she screamed, rather girly like, "The Great Cookie of Ashambala is the legendary cookie of myth that supposedly tastes better than any other cookie ever made, and is big enough to feed a small city for weeks. In the story it was made by a benevolent ruler whose people were starving during a great drought. To save them, he decided to bake a giant cookie that could hold them all until the following spring. He was supposedly one of the best bakers in history but he couldn't get the cookie to bake with it being so large. Starving bandits heard rumors of the cookie and wanted the food for themselves. When they broke into the castle, they were stopped, but the jail cells were full so they had no place to put the bandits. The king was frustrated and had the idea to put them into the cookie. It worked and the cookie finally baked, and he fed his kingdom for years until they were able to plant crops and raise livestock again."

I recoiled slightly, "EWWWWWWWW! That's disgusting. It's like a less dark version that one American movie Sweeney Todd. Gross."

A grin took over her face when I reeled back, and she got a hand free from behind her to swat at the tongs and red hot cookie. I gasped, watching as the cookie went flying and the kitchen door opened. The smoking cookie sat above the door a ways, stared at by three pairs of eyes.

"Wow, you're quiet! I'm a demon and I didn't even hear you come in. Then again, I was kinda' fearing for my life, so I wouldn't have been paying much attention to that anyway," Shi-chan muttered, shoving me aside.

The ice lord was unimpressed, though interested in the projectile that came a fraction of an inch to hitting him. The fact that it was smoking would have interested me too, if I wasn't so mortified and scared for my life. An attempt on his honor made him put me on his wanted list, what would an attempt on his life make me? An angel in heaven already?

"I came to assist on the damn sweets for a stupid wedding I want nothing to do with, not to have my person molested by cookies. Hurry it up or else I'm leaving," He said airily, looking around and appraising the kitchen.

"Actually," I said brightly, "That is a great idea. I'm sorry I didn't let you know, but Shi-chan and I got so much done already. We really don't need any assistance at this point whatsoever, which means we only have to work together on that cake, and that's not till later, so no worries." It sounded so false, but honestly, he even wanted to leave, so what was the big deal?

He quirked an eyebrow, "Who taught you how to lie?"

"My… family? I don't know! What sort of question is that?!"

"Just one from a person who is so unconvinced, I don't even need to see the evidence."

That pissed me off, "There is no evidence! My plan is full-proof!"

"Is that a confession I hear," He rolled his eyes and his sleeves up, "If you have supposed evidence, where would it happen to be? Even a blind person could see you don't even have all the ingredients done."

"Like a blind person would care," I muttered.

Shilulu looked back and forth between us, "Okay… Whatever you two snarling, vicious, little puppywumps. I'm outta' here. Don't burn down the place, and if one of you kills the other one, I expect the blood cleaned up and no body parts. Rin, no nailing his balls to the wall when you're done. Asshole, no… well, if you put even a scratch on Rin I'll roast you within an inch of your life. Ta-ta!"

"What the hell is a puppywump!?" I shouted after her. The bell rang at the front of the shop, and silence reigned.

Sesshomaru looked so awkward in my kitchen. It was strange; I expected him to be at home wherever he could cook. His crisp black pants and light blue shirt, which he would usually have covered by his white chefs' outfit, made him look like a lawyer really. It was just too formal for my kitchen, where jeans and t-shirts were the order of the day.

Turning, I rummaged through a cupboard way in the back of the cramped kitchen. I could hear him following me, probably just out of a lack of a purpose at this point. With a flourish, I threw him his new 'gear', so to speak.

"What is this?" he said, sounding somewhat horrified.

"Hey," I shook my finger at him, scolding lightly, "You have work to do, and while your restaurant may have fancy chef outfits, we have the basics here. Your accessories are a lovely custom apron which ties to keep your shirt and pants clean and a hair net. And with your long hair, you better put it up in that hairnet or else I'll be pissed mister. I'm not having a fine from the health inspector because I have a rookie in the back."

He growled, brandishing the hair net, "I don't do hairnets. Don't you have a hat or something?"

"Nope," I grinned and turned around to get back to work, "You'll just have to bear the shame of looking like a lunch lady for a while." Directing him to various sweet tables and what he could be doing, I went back to stirring one of my pots, keeping half an ear out for customers coming in.

We worked in silence for a while, him just puttering around and doing what I told him he could, surprisingly, and me shoving things in and out of the refrigerator or oven. Hours passed and nothing really happened. It was surprising how comfortable it was, not fighting with him or having him threaten me. The silence was appreciated I guess after having to deal with Shilulu for so long.

It was when I was grabbing a tray from the oven that I heard Sesshomaru mumbling something under his breath, and what amazingly sounded like a chuckle escaped his lips. After putting the tray down, I whirled around on him, "You were laughing. What in the whole entire universe was funny enough to make you laugh?"

"Nothing."

I glared furiously at him, but went back to work nonetheless. It was annoying that he was laughing at me, but I couldn't do much about it anyway.

The next time I was bending over to grab a sack of sugar off the floor when I heard it again, but this time I was close enough to make out what he said.

"I see London, I see France, I see Rin's gumball and cupcake covered underpants…"

My face flushed so hard, for a moment I thought I would pass out from the rapid blood flow. Shilulu had bought the matching bra and panty set as a joke, and I was short on laundry so I ended up wearing them. I just never thought that my jeans were low enough to expose them, and to SESSHOMARU of all the people…

"You pervert," I muttered, "I don't watch your ass whenever you bend over!"

"It's hard to miss when you stick it in my face the way you do. I'd swear you were seducing me, if I thought you knew how to, or had more maturity than a five year old who wears cupcake and gumball machine panties."

My face was just flushing redder and redder, and I couldn't face this embarrassment. It was hard enough to stomach a stranger noticing, but Sesshomaru teasing me and saying I was immature pushed me over the edge so hard, I swore it was like I had become possessed.

The nearest thing to me was a bowl of cooled marshmallow paste. My aim in the past may have been terrible at best when it came to Shilulu, but I was so furious that my hit was spot on with Sesshomaru. Marshmallow paste covered his face in such a short amount of time it was almost like I had been fast forwarded. When my breathing calmed a bit, I felt horrified by what I'd done. While Sesshomaru wasn't my favorite person, or really on my list at all, he still wasn't a person I wanted to piss off. The look in his eyes was murderous.

At first, neither of us moved. I was too terrified to and I think he was trying to keep his demon in check. His eyes glowed a color that I couldn't describe, mixing red and gold together in a fierce battle of wills. Finally the gold won out, and he took a step backward to face the table. Sighing silently in relief, I was about to turn around and get a rag to clean his shirt when the oddest sensation came over me.

Closing my eyes until it passed, I could only describe the feeling as one of when you are caught in a sandstorm going vertical instead of horizontal. Coughing I looked around and saw I had been turned pure white down to my shoes. My hair looked something like Sesshomaru's now and my skin had gone so pale that I'm sure bat demons would be envious. A great pile of white powder sat at my feet, and every time I breathed, a ton of it would land in my mouth. After another second, I realized I'd been covered in flour, and Sesshomaru was holding the empty bag.

He wasn't smirking, like I expected him to be, but he certainly was enjoying it if I was reading him right. His eyes glowed more golden than I had ever seen them, and held a look of sheer pride at his work. One of his well shaped eyebrows rose to his hair line, as if declaring that I had done this to myself. His right hand held the empty bag, little wafts of flour powder still coming up with each swish, and his left sat on his hip in a pompous manner that suited him too well. His back was poker straight, brining him to his full intimidating height of 6'4, making it easier for him to stare down at me and mock my whiteness.

My rage abruptly returned full force, and I found the next stickiest item I could reach, peanut butter. Unlucky this time though, my aim was off and he was able to duck it and slide back behind another table. Groaning at my luck, I realized he now had all the ammunition he could need. He had found the icing table.

I really wasn't quick enough for this battle. Sesshomaru had me out matched five to one, and I was even on my home turf! My aim, rage fueled or not, wasn't good enough to go up against his superior strength, speed, and other fighting capabilities that came naturally to him as a demon. That and whatever I hit him with wasn't as satisfying as it would have been seeing him covered in multicolored icing like I was.

Seeing that I was outmatched, I quickly limped out the backroom door, hoping to take refuge in my broom closet sized office and negotiate surrender, but there really was no such luck. As soon as I got out and tried vaulting over the counter, he hit me from behind in the back of the head with a great sticky glob, and I lost my already precarious balance. With no grace, I fell to the floor, rubbing my injured leg as the brace cut into it with annoyance. Before I could react, though, his strong grip took hold of my upper arm and he hauled me over to the middle of the shop. Taking his apron off, he somehow managed to tie both my feet and hands with it, leaving me immobile unless I wanted to be on the ground.

I could almost see his smug aura floating around him as he decided what to do next with his prisoner of war. Before I could say anything, he stuffed a rag in my mouth from out of nowhere, and walked to the front of the store. Watching in horror, I saw him turn the open sign to closed, and pull all the drapes down so no one could see inside. I couldn't imagine what he was planning on doing but it was starting to make me very very very nervous. Flashes of the past blurred in my mind, and instead of Akitoki, I could see Sesshomaru inflicting pain upon me.

Tears began to flow down my face as he passed. The look he gave me was one of slight confusion before he moved back into the kitchen, leaving me standing. I tried to move so I could get out, but doing so without falling and alerting him to my escape seemed impossible. Just as I hopped toward the door, the kitchen swung open and Sesshomaru came out carrying something. Not really seeing, I felt it would be a knife or some other weapon, just like my nightmares. Once again he grabbed me, and dragged me back to the spot I had been in before.

Bending over, he scooped up what he had brought from the kitchen, and intense relief flooded my veins seeing he was only still playing. What he held, while still not good, was not going to harm me. A bowl of cold chocolate pudding mix from the fridge was my only thing to worry about.

"You have lost the war," he said lightly, circling me with his predatory stare.

I was barely able to get my next words out through the gag, "Bastard, I haven't lost yet!"

He smirked, "Oh but you have Rin. You have," crossing in front of me, he grabbed the gag out my mouth, "Now, I'll take your last words. No one will save you."

Even though shivers ran down my spine at his words and the memories they dredged up, I stood tall, looking away from him like a soldier to the enemy, "I want to thank my beautiful shop, who has stood by me till the end. I also was to say that my underwear is much cooler than yours will ever be, considering they're probably tight-whites."

Growling something ferocious, he stuffed the gag back in my mouth. Before I could even think, the cold of the pudding began dripping down my body. I felt it first plaster my hair to my head, then casually make its way down my closed eyes and face. For a second, I could hardly breathe as it ran down my nose, before I continued it descent. Wrinkling my nose, I felt it start dripping into my shirt and the cold goo caused my nipples to harden a bit against my bra. It was a surprise how much pudding there was, considering; I wasn't expecting it to get much farther than my shirt, much less down all the way to my pants and to cover them in chocolaty goodness.

He was smirking now, and I couldn't help but smile a bit myself. The food fight was awful fun; I had to admit, even if I had lost. The fact that we were both filthy now was an added bonus because I'd never seen Sesshomaru as anything but immaculate, and it was almost natural for him to be covered in sweet goo. I was twice as covered though, considering I had had both flour and chocolate pudding dumped on me.

Finally, I sighed, "You won, now I'm going to go change. A couple splatters here and there is one thing, but I'm covered. You better hope to hell pudding doesn't stain too badly or else I'm going to make you pay for new clothes." He untied me, and set the apron aside, considering it was so covered in gunk that it was pointless to put back on. After that, he simply walked back into the kitchen without a word, as if we hadn't just had a massive food war.

I was cleaning off my leg brace when I heard loud beeping go off in the kitchen. Strapping the brace onto my leg again, and preparing to finish getting dressed, the door opened. I suppose a normal woman wouldn't need such a long amount of time to get dressed, and he could assume that I was finished, but really it wasn't polite to walk in on people! Sesshomaru stood in the doorway holding onto my cell-phone as it continued to beep. Glaring, I wrapped a towel around my waist to cover my cupcake gumball underwear from more teasing. He didn't look like he was going to tease me at all though, by the look on his face. I took the cell-phone without a word, and called Shilulu back. Apparently, she was going to have to teach another class before she could come back.

Even after I had finished my phone conversation, and was back to cleaning the damnable brace, he still stood there, watching avidly. In the end, I'm really not sure how it got this gunked up under my jeans, though it's a good possibility that it's been so long since I've cleaned it, that this wasn't from today at all. With some of the sticky residue out of the latches, I was able to push down on them, but still had difficulty getting it to close. Seeing how Sesshomaru was still busy discretely gawking, I decided to use his help anyway.

"Could you give me a hand? The upper portion isn't latching right," he stepped over somewhat cautiously and put his hand to the part that wrapped around my leg and latch. "Just push down, lightly please; right there on the little tab, it'll lock in place. I'm just holding the band so it doesn't open up." The feeling of his warm hand on my thigh sent tingles shooting across my skin, but I could hardly tell if it was from pleasure or fear.

As we worked on latching the rest of them, he observed the cuts that marred my entire left leg, "These are knife wounds. I wouldn't take you for the street fighting type."

"I couldn't tell you how much fun it is," I snorted, "You should try it sometime without the weapon."

"Why is it you need the brace," he said as he roughly tried to snap one of the latches closed. I yelped as it pinched my skin snapping shut. He quickly unsnapped it, and re-latched it more carefully.

"Most of the scars are just surface wounds, but if you look," I pointed toward my knee, "Some of the cuts were deep enough to sever nerves and ligaments. The doctors said I could have it repaired so I would be able to walk without the brace as weight support, but it would have cost a small fortune. The price of real-estate and appliances being what they are, I had to make a decision whether to open the shop or do surgery. I wanted happiness, so I sacrificed mobility. It hasn't proved a bad decision yet."

He didn't say anything after that, so I decided that was the end of the conversation. Really, there wasn't much else to say, unless I wanted to get in to Akitoki, and I really didn't, not with Sesshomaru. After we both finished strapping me in, he continued to look at the brace. I watched as he ran a claw just barely over the surface of the bindings. His expression was almost one of conflict. Without a word, he left me alone.

Sighing, I pulled on my clean pair of pants, deciding it was time to start getting back to work. We'd both had our fun, and I'm pretty sure what passed between us would be something that could keep the peace for a while. Despite the fact that there was time, we needed to get to work so that poor Sango and Miroku's wedding would go off without a hitch. Though if I was honest to myself and others, no wedding EVER went off without a hitch, it just was defying nature.

When I got back into the kitchen, Sesshomaru was working as if we had never stopped. I was impressed to see that even the flour mound I had been covered in had been swept off the floor and into a garbage can. Choking back giggles, I went back to my place at the stove and turned on the burners again. Sesshomaru must have heard my restraint because he growled faintly, and looked like he was going to take off his recently put on hairnet. He was right; it did nothing for him…

* * *

When Shilulu returned three hours later, just as we finished, she looked around the kitchen and between the two of us for a couple minutes. Sesshomaru had easily been able to wash his face in the sink, and none of his clothes had gotten dirty considering my crappy aim. While my hair was sticky with flour and pudding, I'd gotten some of it out in the sink as well, so I couldn't quite imagine what she was looking for, besides one of us being dead.

"Okay, you two lived, but why the heck is there pudding all over the center of the floor in the shop?"

I swear both Sesshomaru and I sweat dropped, me making excuses as fast as I could manage. Honestly, the food war was going to stay between us, and I think we both wanted it that way…


	10. Bittersweet Chocolate Trifles

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 10

Bittersweet Chocolate Trifles

_An: As always, it has been a while. Nothing new to report, the story goes on, as usual. God I'm SO glad I rewrote the plot. Thanks oodles to my beta.  
_

_Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha and I never will. All rights go to Rumiko Takahashi. _

I sighed as I gripped my briefcase and got ready to get off the bus. Today, Shilulu had to work at the studio, and I can see in the near future I won't be able to rely on her anymore. Things were picking up at the dance studio, and there was only so much that Shippo could handle on his own. That and Shilulu had her own dream to pursue. Kohaku was a big help, but I'm not sure how much longer I'll have him either, considering he was probably looking for a better paying job than working with me part-time. Being so lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice everyone staring out the window as we neared my stop.

As the bus drove away, I was blinded by flashing red and blue lights surrounding my vision. Blinking a few times to clear my vision, my face paled as I saw it was my shop the police cars were focused on. Even with my bum leg, I crossed the street with a quick air, ducking the yellow tape, and finding the nearest police officer.

"Sir what in the world is going on?! This is my shop!" I exclaimed, trying not to yell. Looking around wildly, I saw with no little amount of horror, one of the main windows was shattered, and the display behind it destroyed and scattered across the floor. I couldn't look any farther.

He looked at me sympathetically, "Omeiya, Rin? We just got the information on you, so we never got the chance to call you. I'm afraid there was a break in this morning. One of the shops next door called in when they heard the glass break and gunshots going off. You're lucky you weren't here, or I think you'd be dead. At this point we're going to charge the man with attempted homicide, illegal possession of a firearm, and breaking and entering…" He trailed off as I stepped up to the door and unlocked it, not wanting to step into the horror that part of my shop had become.

It truly was a mess. Besides the broken window and display, he'd apparently gone on a rampage, destroying everything he could lay his filthy hands on. Boxes were on the floor, and bags exploded. He'd broken all the handles on the candy dispensers, and the contents littered the floor like a broken stained glass window. Glass had shattered all over from where he'd shot the counter and register. Large gun holes were in the backroom door, and I had little doubt that the police officer was wrong on the likelihood of me dying had I been here. The door looked like it was almost ripped off its hinges, and he'd apparently tried to shoot the appliances, looking at the dents in the stainless steel.

"My god…" I whispered, leaning against the door frame. My dream had been desecrated by my nightmare, and I should have expected as much. He'd known for a long time. I listened as another one of the cops talked on the radio. He came up to me a little later.

He coughed a little to get my attention, "Miss Omieya? I'm Sergeant Kurashiki. Another squad infiltrated the man's apartment after we confiscated his license. His name is Samara, Akitoki. Apparently he's been stalking you for quite some time now. They found pictures, addresses, and a diary detailing it. There were also drugs that he was charged with possessing before. We don't think he was planning on killing you at first, but the drugs made him snap. I was told you tried to have a lawsuit filed against him before? From here we'll be reopening the case file, as well as charging him for this. He should be locked up for a good long time after this."

"Great," I muttered weakly. This was a lot to take in, even for me.

He tried to comfort me, "You don't have to worry about much miss. I'm sure you have insurance, and we'll make sure to have this cleaned up in no time. A clean up crew is already on its way, and if the insurance company is swift, you can have your shop back open in a week or so. The state should also chip in some funds." I nodded and decided to voice my biggest question.

"Sergeant," I muttered weakly, "Will he be open to visitors soon, or will the police still be questioning him for a while?"

His eyebrows nearly hit his hairline, "I'm sure something can be arranged, after you're checked over. We'll need to make sure the drugs are out of his system as well. Are you sure that's what you want? After all this, it may be best if you relax a bit, maybe spend time with someone and unwind."

"No, I need to talk with him; it's important," I said shaking my head. Even I wasn't sure this was the best decision, but I had the courage now, and it'd probably quickly escape me if I didn't act now.

Moving towards the door, I saw that a very large crowd had gathered around the store, including TV reporters and journalists. I couldn't imagine why it would be of any interest to most people, but I wasn't going to stick around to be questioned or get my picture taken. Then I saw Shilulu bursting through the crowd, wide eyed.

"Rin, what happened?" she cried, as I beckoned a police officer to let her through without stepping out the store to be seen.

I smiled a little, "You have great timing as usual Shi-chan. Can you take over for me here? There's something I need to take care of with the Sergeant down at the police station."

"I just saw what happened on TV," she said, exasperated, "What in the name of hell did this? You need to talk to me!"

All I said was," Akitoki." I didn't look back as the sergeant and I ducked our heads before running through the crowd, and to his car, driving off.

The police station was deathy quiet when we got there. The image of the usually busy room, with phones ringing off the hook wasn't it at all. Someone worked the main desk, and another guarded the rooms to the side, but other than that, nothing… The sergeant showed me to a bench before moving to one of the back rooms, leaving me alone in the silence. Really, even though I hate crowds, it would have been better than how deadly the silence was. All I could do was watch the minutes tick past on the clock.

It was a while before the sergeant returned, but he immediately lead me down the blocked off hall to an interrogation room. Another police officer came and frisked me to make sure I wasn't here planning to kill him. Vaguely, in the back of my mind, I wished I could, but I couldn't.

The sergeant gave me a stern look, "Last chance. I'm not sure you really want to do this. He's still violent, even off the drugs. He's handcuffed to the table, and an officer will be with you, so he won't be able to hurt you. Are you sure?"

I took a deep breath, "I'm sure. This is something I need to do and get off my chest." The sergeant nodded and unlocked the door, before gesturing for the officer that frisked me go in ahead.

Just like the rest of the building, everything was silent in the little grey room. Akitoki sat in a chair, facing the door and was, as the sergeant said, handcuffed to the table. His head was down and he didn't move when we entered, it looked like he wasn't even breathing. The officer took his place in the corner of the room and didn't make any motion for me to move. There was a chair in front of me, but it looked cold and uninviting and I was very nervous. Finally, I pulled out the chair and sat down, waiting for him to acknowledge me.

After what seemed like forever, he looked up at me, but didn't say anything. His face looked so much more haggard then it did when I first met him. He didn't look all that different from the average Japanese citizen, but he had always had a charming smile on his face in the past. It was almost as if that charming smile excused him from everything, like it was impossible for anyone to believe he would do anything bad with a smile like that. Even I couldn't say it was a smarmy, arrogant smile. I fell in love with that face.

"I wish you wouldn't have destroyed my shop," It was all I could manage to say. Nothing about my rage or the fear he had caused me for years, just a meek, mild sentence.

"You know it was never my original intention to kill you. Something this morning just made me feel fed up." he said in an almost frustrated manner, "The way you kept denying me, avoiding me! How you just don't seem to appreciate anything I've done."

That inspired a bitter laugh, "I'm supposed to be thankful for you making me partially crippled? I'm supposed to enjoy the harassment and the threats? You know I'm not."

His eyes narrowed, "I've done everything for you, and all you do is push me away! You never used to fear me, never used to deny you loved me."

"You confined me like an animal, tortured me," I spat, "You took me away from my friends and then took a knife to my leg! You must be completely messed up in the head if you actually think that any of that would make me love you."

"Remember the photo shoots we used to do? You used to love those, feeling like a model on a magazine cover. I always made you beautiful for my photos and that's all I've ever tried to do. It's been killing me inside that we've never been able to finish that last one. It would have been our masterpiece."

"You know," I muttered, "You lied earlier. You said you never had any intention of killing me? That's bullshit, if I had sat through and enjoyed our last "project" I would have died. My leg was bleeding so badly and you just wanted to make my other leg, arms and neck match! Do you honestly think I would have survived that?!"

"If you had I would have just put you in more of my pictures. That's all I wanted to do; take photos of you, but you never cooperated. Just stayed in that damnable store of yours or hung around with your friends. No time for me, or our pictures."

"Fuck your pictures, you're insane and I'm done! I've just come to say goodbye, since this will be the last time I talk to you, EVER. The court will decide what to do with you, and I hope they have you rot in prison for the rest of your life," I spat, doing my best not to raise my voice.

"You're nothing without me," he chuckled, "You'll only ever want me. No man could ever make you forget me."

I stood up and prepared to leave, the words that left my mouth were laced with venom, "You're right Akitoki-san, no man could ever make me forget the awful things you've made me endure, but god knows I can do my best on my own to forget. You're such an insignificant person it shouldn't be too hard, you shit-eating Neanderthal."

I immediately left before he could say anything else. I found that I really didn't want to hear it anymore. This was my snapping point; I was done with being helpless and terrified. The asshole is in jail now, and hopefully will be for a long time, so I don't have to be scared of him anymore. It's about time I'm not some damsel in distress, I just don't have time for that nonsense, and I'm stronger than that too.


	11. Sweet, Sedate, Stone Heavy Stoves

Candy Fit for a Demon Lord

Chapter 11

Sweet, Sedate, Stone Heavy Stoves

Everyone was on edge around me for the next few weeks. InuTaisho and Izayoi, along with everyone else came by to offer assistance in some form or another. Sesshomaru had even acted less like a snowman and had said he was sorry to see the store needing such repairs. No matter how I tried to explain to them that I was fine and would get over everything, they all seemed to think I was like a little girl, hiding away her fear and sadness. It was the first time I had felt so frustrated with everyone, not understanding that I had finally gotten over it and was ready to move on with my life.

Shilulu was definitely the worst. All her mothering and coddling was just too much. I wanted her to be a friend, not a bodyguard against a nonexistent foe. She couldn't see that I wasn't like before, when I needed her to be like that. All I could manage to do was push her away and try to force her back into her own life, where she could have something to distract her. I'd never thought of the shop being confining for her, but I suppose it was because she couldn't focus her energy as much as she could dancing.

I spent the majority of the time avoiding people and putting my all into fixing the shop back up. Research showed that it was far from cheap to make many of the repairs I needed. Insurance was all well and good but they weren't known for being speedy with sending money. That, and all these expenses were just going to end up piling onto the ones I still had left from opening the shop. So between orders for new windows and such and clean up, I was at the bank humbly begging for loans. Altogether a fair amount of stress, but it was nice to deal with the work load instead of the pitying glances everyone was giving me most of the time.

It was eleven now, and I was at my apartment waiting for a phone call from the appliance company about the delivery of my new stove. Hopefully it would happen today, but there was no guarantee. The longer I had to wait for everything, though, the longer my store would be out of business.

The phone rang, "Moshi, moshi?"

"Is this Omeiya, Rin? I'm with the appliance company."

I smiled, "Yes, yes it is, did the order come in?"

"Yep, just this morning, and we have already sent the truck off to your shop. It should be there by twelve."

"Oh good," I sighed, "Do I need to supervise him putting it in, or will he just find the hook up?"

The man sounded puzzled, "I'm sorry miss, but we were just hired for drop off. My men don't do installations. Though those aren't too difficult."

I held back a curse, "Fine, fine. I'll be there when he makes the drop off. Thank you for the time."

"You're welcome. Have a nice day."

Sighing, I picked up my things and hurried to catch the train. If I missed the guy, I would be screwed and stuck with a stove I couldn't do anything with.

It was really my damn bum leg's fault. If it hadn't started acting up and protesting my quick movements, I would have made it to my shop in time. That being as it was, I didn't make it in time. The driver must have been horribly impatient to get a move on, because it was only 12:10 when I got there. He was kind enough to leave the stove on the top of the stairs.

With a lot of effort, I managed to squeeze between the stove and the entryway to open the door and get inside the shop. One of the windows was still boarded up, and there was no glass in the display case, but there was a lot of progress since the break in. The candy dispensers had been replaced and refilled, the door to the back was replaced, and all the appliances that had been too riddled with bullet holes to work anymore had been taken away. I'd also gotten new shipments of products to replace all the damaged ones. Now what to do about that stove…

My first try was desperately shoving my body against it. I was hoping that, like my refrigerator at home, it would move a bit and I would be able to slowly move it into the store. The thing had to way a ton, because it didn't budge no matter how hard I rammed myself against it. All I really got to show for my effort was a large bruise on my arm, and a lot of weird looks and giggles from passerby.

Defeated, I realized I would need to call someone strong to carry it in. The proverbial light bulb went off and I jogged to go get my cell-phone. I quickly dialed InuYasha's number.

It picked up on the second to last ring, "What?"

"InuYasha, thank god, I need someone to help with my new stove. The delivery guy just left it outside my store and I have no hope of moving it myself."

"Jeeze Rin, I hate to say no but there are going to be inspectors here any minute now, and dad and I have to schmooze them for the rest of the day," he sounded put off.

"Crud," I mumbled, "I know Shippo and Shilulu are busy right now with classes, and I don't know anyone else strong enough to lift the beast."

InuYasha let out a deep breath, "I know someone who can help. Keep yourself occupied for a bit, and I'll send them over." Before I could even say thank you he hung up. I suppose that's InuYasha for you. I decided to read the newspaper in the meantime, and I spent my time waiting outside next to the stove.

"This is the emergency InuYasha sent me out for?" I nearly jumped a foot in the air at the sudden voice. Groaning I turned around to see the assistant InuYasha decided to send.

Sesshomaru was eyeing the stove with the contempt I'm sure he felt for me. He had apparently rushed over here so fast that he hadn't even bothered to change out of his uniform. As usual, his pristine white clothes were still pressed and looked like he had just put them on. Surprisingly, it was a nice change to have someone around who didn't feel sorry for me, though I could have done without the blatant hatred.

While I knew several demons, I had never really seen them use their abilities. It was usually frowned on in society, so they kept it to a minimum. That was why I was so surprised when without any exertion, Sesshomaru picked up the stove with ease and sauntered into the kitchen. I was surprised he remembered where everything was as he placed the stove down where the old one used to be.

"Do you have the instructions for how to install it?" I nodded and pulled the bag off the side of the stove.

Without any preamble, he grabbed the instructions and settled himself where he could reach the back to hook everything up. I was glad I had cleaned the room, or else his nice white clothes would have been filthy. It was also nice to have some company, since I was avoiding everyone for a couple weeks now. With nothing else to do, I decided to use the time to try and bridge the gap between me and Sesshomaru. It couldn't be too hard considering I already knew he was educated and attractive.

"Thank you for helping me, Sesshomaru. I'm sure I'd end up blowing something up if I tried to do this," I said while hopping up on the counter.

"Hnn. You're welcome."

I fished for something to say, "Have Miroku and Sango started pilling up wedding menu orders on you?"

He growled lightly, "Indeed they have. One would think they would know better. I do not have time to concern my self with trivial details of their wedding. They're lucky I'm doing this at all."

"I think it's nice," he raised an eyebrow, "They obviously must trust you a lot to give you the job of their wedding dinner. You only get married once or at least in theory."

He continued to work with the hoses for a while, "I never thought of it like that, though it does not change the fact that it is an inconvenience on me. It is a lot to prepare."

"I could help. With the store being under repair I don't have much to do. I wouldn't mind helping you out with the simple stuff. It's not all that different from baking."

He stood back up, "If you wish to use your own free time that is your decision. I won't object to it. Preparation will begin next week at five A.M. Do not mess with the music this time. Your stove should work now."

I walked with him to the door, "Thank you again, Sesshomaru. I know you didn't have to do this for me, and I really appreciate it. It was nice to have company again too."

"You're welcome." I was surprised he had looked me in the eye when he said it, and didn't look anything more than neutral. Maybe he didn't hate me so much after all.

* * *

_AN: Yeah... I'm a douche. Sorry about that... Someday this story will be finished. Maybe when I'm 80. By then you guys will be able to sue for shit tons of money for the pain and suffering I've caused you. If you don't want to review because I'm a douche, feel free. I'll take that as a FUCK off bitch. So, to recap, I'm sorry I'm such a douche. _


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